Black as Night, White as Snow
by L.M. Avalon
Summary: A Snow White parody: Kagome is fleeing the wrath, and slight insanity, of her elder stepsister. With a notsocharming prince and the magical keeper of an enchanted mirror after her as well, can she stay hidden? AU. Inu/Kag.
1. Facing the Music

This is meant for fun, so please don't take it too seriously.

I'm following the storyline of the Brothers Grimm version rather than the Disney movie. I'll be sure to mention anything you might not know in case you've never read the original story.

Edited: 11/23/11

Disclaimer: I do not own _Inuyasha_ or _Snow White_.

* * *

Black as Night, White as Snow

_Chapter One: Facing the Music_

* * *

A beautiful woman sat at her windowsill, idly watching the world outside. Nestled in her brown hair, cut short, was an elaborate crown. In a beautifully carved cradle at her side, the queen's newborn daughter lay fast asleep.

"She'll grow up to be a beautiful girl," she explained to the birds chirping in the tree growing next to the castle wall. "It's woman's intuition, you know."

After several more minutes, she turned her attention instead to the baby.

The queen reached out and ran her fingers through the short, dark hair. "Black as night."

She ran a hand down her daughter's smooth face. "White as snow."

She gently tapped the young princess's lips and cheeks. "Red as blood."

The little girl yawned widely and stretched like a cat inside the cradle. Sleepily, her eyes blinked open, focused on her mother's face, and stared deeply into the kind brown eyes looking down at her. The queen leaned inside and pressed her lips to her child's forehead.

Drawing back, she looked into the infant's eyes. "Blue as sky."

**_17 Years Later…_**

Singing floated easily on the light breeze. The haunting melody sounded more beautiful and soothing than all man-made instruments combined could have ever managed.

In the center of the castle courtyard stood a beautiful young woman. Her silky, black hair fell in waves around her milky face and shoulders. Bright blue eyes winked at the animals gathered at her feet. Lips and cheeks of cherry red accented her pretty, young face. Currently those lips were parted as she sang and danced in a slow waltz, her arms hung in the air as if around an invisible partner. Blue jays and cardinals leant their voices to hers, strengthening her song and adding a new dimension to the melody.

Abruptly, from the highest window of the tallest tower, a woman's shout cut through the song. "Kagome! Stop that infuriating, ugly noise. It's _nauseating_."

Instantly stopping in her tracks, the maiden turned her face to the sky. "Yes, Queen Kikyou," she called back, her speaking voice just as musical as her singing one; her tone, although resigned, was still cheerful.

"Good," the woman answered coldly, and the quiet response still carried down to Kagome on the wind.

The young woman perched on the side of a well in the middle of the courtyard, and her blue eyes surveyed the surrounding garden. She had lovingly planted, weeded, and watered the rows upon rows of flowers ever since she was little. She glanced into blue well water and studied the gently swaying surface. Cocking her head at the reflection that looked right back, she sighed. It was time to get back to what she had previously been doing— her chores. At the moment, that meant scrubbing the castle paths free of dirt. Not an easy task, considering the courtyard was _made_ of dirt.

When she finally got to her feet, her stormy eyes glittered mischievously. Kagome took a few shifty glances left, then right, and, after finally deciding the coast was clear, she spit in the well—

The well that only the queen was allowed to drink from.

With a new grin tugging at her lips, Kagome went back to her abandoned scrub brush.

* * *

Inuyasha scowled as he pushed deeper into the scratchy underbrush of the dark forest. Technically, he was always scowling, so it was more like his scowl had darkened. He was angry, because the voice had stopped— the lovely voice he had been listening to for the last few minutes as he got closer to the castle. The voice that soothed his normally abused half-demon ears. His amber eyes narrowed in anger, since there was absolutely nothing he could do about it.

It didn't help that his dark scowl was accompanied by dark thoughts.

_Why do _I _have to visit the castle? I'm not even a prince... I'm a _lord_! I don't even have any political power. Just because he inherited the kingdom when dad died and he's the oldest doesn't mean he can order me around... Well, I guess it does, but it doesn't mean I have to like it. For all he knows, I'll screw up this meeting with the queen, and our kingdoms will have to go to war, and everyone will die horrible, bloody deaths, and it'll be _his_ fault for sending me in the first place. It would almost be worth it, if I managed to piss him off in the long run. _

Chuckling quietly, the half-demon lifted his eyes to the black castle looming in the near distance, but then they fell on the bright, lovingly cared-for garden that surrounded it. _Looks like Frankenstein was their interior decorator. At least the garden doesn't look like crap. _

It was quite possibly the most thinking he'd done all year.

Within minutes, he'd passed the line of trees and stepped onto a dirt path leading into the garden. It only took a few seconds for him to grow impatient. Turning disgustedly to a black-haired maid nearby, he demanded, "Where's Queeny? I gotta talk to her."

The kneeling woman stopped her scrubbing, her shoulders growing tense under the patched, rough cloth of her dress. The girl sighed quietly, and one of his ears twitched as it picked up the gentle sound. Without turning around or getting up, she called over her shoulder, "In the castle." He turned on his heel towards the gloomy front door but paused when she followed up her previous comment with, "Idiot. Where the hell else would a _queen_ be?"

Inuyasha's face burned with embarrassment... and anger. Keeping his eyes trained on the ivy-covered door, he yelled back at her, "Thank a lot, _bitch_."

The poor boy didn't see the scrub brush coming until it slammed into the back of his pretty silver head.

* * *

Kagome had never been one to let things bring her down. She had food, water, clothing, and shelter. Everyone she had ever known (which was mostly limited to the other servants) pointed out constantly that she was an extremely optimistic and cheerful person, all things considered. Few things could dampen her mood. There was one thing, however, that could upset her: her stepsister, the queen, Kikyou.

The man who had just left her garden had sounded relatively young— she hadn't turned to look at him to be absolutely certain it was really a man, but if it had been a woman, Kagome felt extremely sorry for her to have a voice that deep. A small part of Kagome was almost envious, despite the man's rudeness. Men always came to visit Kikyou. She was the queen (the _beautiful_ queen nonetheless) of the kingdom, and men journeyed from far and wide to gaze upon the most powerful woman of the land. Over the years, Kagome had become desensitized to the handsome, dashing princes and knights who were far too superior to look at her while they ordered her around, their hearts already set on Kikyou.

On her way back from retrieving the scrub brush, Kagome sat once again on the lip of the well. She looked down into the water and scrutinized her reflection, comparing it to her stepsister.

Kikyou's hair was stark black, too, but much longer than Kagome's. The queen's skin was pale and perfect, yet she didn't have rosy cheeks like her stepsister. Her eyes were a steely, cold gray; they held none of the light and warmth that Kagome's did, but they were still lovely, the maid supposed. Where Kagome's full lips were red, Kikyou's thin ones, always set in a grim line, were a subtle pink. Kagome was surrounded by warmth and colors. Kikyou had always been cold and calculating, lacking color, yet still beautiful in a china doll kind of way. Kagome was full of life, while Kikyou was extremely aloof. They were a little similar in looks, but nothing alike at all when it really came down to it.

No one remembered this, but Kagome was not the maid of the castle. She was its princess. The original one, anyway.

Kikyou's mother was Kagome's father's _second_ wife; the marriage meant Kagome gained both a stepmother and a stepsister, a rather big change to a life that had only contained a father until then. When the king and queen died in a carriage crash five years earlier, Kikyou stripped Kagome of her title and sent her away to the servants' quarters. Even though Kikyou wasn't the king's daughter by blood, she had been more or less granted the title when her mother became queen when she was a young girl. By being a few years older than Kagome, it gave her an edge— she was much quicker on the draw, much more brutal ensuring she got the title of Queen.

But Kagome didn't really mind. (Really!)

Kagome was once supposed to be queen, but after her doting mother's sudden illness and death and the late remarriage of the king, her stepsister took the spotlight. Kikyou was elegant in every way, and Kikyou's mother had made sure Kagome's father noticed how Kikyou would be a much better queen than his real daughter. The king had agreed, mostly, but had died before making it official, thus Kikyou's ruthless actions.

So when they died, Kikyou became a queen, and Kagome became a maid. It'd been that way for long enough now that Kagome didn't let it bother her anymore. She was happy enough.

Plus, princesses and queens could be so cliché.

* * *

"Looking glass, looking glass on the wall, who is the fairest of them all?"

"_I must say, my_ dear _Queen Kikyou, though it is sad,_

_You are the fairest, so you can't be mad."_

Kikyou nodded her head resolutely, her mouth frozen in a grim grin. She stood in her tower room, facing her floor length, enchanted mirror. Instead of her own reflection, however, the queen saw the form of a young girl inside the frame. It was a tiny demon child with flowing white hair, white skin, and a white dress. A silver flower tucked behind her ear was the only adornment; she didn't even wear any shoes on her little feet.

* * *

Inuyasha stood rigidly, his hand raised and poised to knock on the wooden door. A shiver ran down his spine. That voice had been so... so... so _creepy_. What kind of crackpot poetry was that, and who in their right mind would ask such a weird question to what obviously sounded like a little kid? Taking a step backward, he puckered his lips to give a silent, innocent whistle as he backed away from the door and down the hall.

_Let's not visit Queeny and just say we did?_ Scrunching up his nose in concentration, he walked carefully to the top of the spiral staircase to make his getaway.

Or he _would_ have.

"Come in, Lord Inuyasha!" A voice demanded from the room that he had been about to enter— the room where he had heard the 'poetic' conversation.

Golden eyes narrowed in instant dislike. Inuyasha snarled at the closed door in a manly display; he really did hate being ordered around. But…

Curiosity built at seeing 'Queeny.' After just a moment's more hesitation, he entered, which effectively threw his thoughts out the window. Stepping into the bedroom of the queen of the neighboring kingdom, Inuyasha froze. Every inch of wall space (except for where a ridiculously large mirror was hung) was covered with weapons. Shiny, silver, pointy objects were everywhere. Arrows, knives, swords, daggers, maces, and even a...

Wait...

Was that a fork?

Hell, who kept a _fork_ next to a katana?

Kikyou cocked her head at him. She was wearing an expensive-looking, scarlet kimono, almost like she was trying to add color to her colorless form just for the meeting. But Inuyasha wasn't eyeing her outfit; no, he was intently eyeing her hands. They were currently fingering an extremely sharp looking arrow almost lovingly.

"Inuyasha, tell me why you were sent," she commanded him, pricking her finger purposely on the tip of the arrow. A bead of blood blossomed across the white skin.

He answered quickly, "My brother wanted us to discuss the raids on the northern border."

"Wrong, Inuyasha. There was another reason."

"Yeah? And what's that?" Inuyasha snapped angrily but didn't move, afraid Queeny would charge if he did.

"Lord Sesshoumaru has set something up," she informed him rather calmly.

"Is that right?"

"In three weeks, we shall be married… Please enjoy yourself until then."

Inuyasha exploded, words pouring out of his mouth in such a high pitch at such a fast pace that it was impossible to distinguish anything other than the fact that he was horrified.

"Dearest, I suggest you go prepare. Sesshoumaru wanted this union to join our lands and make us stronger," Kikyou interrupted smoothly, her lips quirking up at the edges with the faintest of smiles.

"I will choose who I marry! And I sure as hell would never choose to marry _you_."

"A little over-dramatic, aren't we?" Kikyou arched a perfect eyebrow at her fiancé, and she almost appeared to find the situation funny. Inuyasha gaped at her. His half-brother and this witch just expected him to give up his life and marry her? "Inuyasha?" Kikyou had come closer and was taping him on the nose with the arrow to gain his attention again. He had obviously lost focus. He opened and closed his mouth, for the first time _ever_ at a loss for words. "I had the impression I was engaged to a half-dog demon, not a goldfish," Kikyou joked dryly.

Inuyasha growled low in his throat. "I'll be back, Queeny. I need to talk to my brother." He cracked his knuckles ominously as he bolted from the room as if the she-devil herself was at his heels.

Which she was.

"I'll be speaking with you soon!" Kikyou called after him. Frowning, she turned back to her mirror. "What did you think, Kanna?"

The young girl who lived in Kikyou's mirror reappeared. "About what, 'Queeny'?" her whispery voice questioned. Kikyou missed the sarcasm.

"Inuyasha, of course."

"He sounds great," Kanna humored the queen. Kikyou, for the last few months since Sesshoumaru had given her his proposition, had been watching Inuyasha through her mirror to 'get to know' the young lord.

Suddenly the queen's face broke down into a deranged smile. "I will get you, Inuyasha!" She cackled evilly before erupting in a hacking cough, the menacing laugh too much for her throat.

Kanna swiftly disappeared before Kikyou asked her anything else. Kikyou took a deep breath and instantly reverted back to her calm self, almost horrified with the past few minutes of her own behavior. "Maybe I should stop eating jellied cow hooves before I go to sleep," she wondered out loud as she walked over to the window to watch the rapidly disappearing half-demon.

* * *

A ray of sunlight slipped between Kikyou's drapes, landing across the queen's face the next morning. She slid out from under her silk sheets, rubbing the sleep from her eyes as she came to stand before her mirror. It was a morning ritual to ask her favorite question. "Looking glass, looking glass on the wall, who is the fairest of them all?"

"_Black as Night, White as Snow, Red as Blood, Blue as Sky,_

_You are no longer the fairest; of this I cannot lie."_

Kikyou started to smile and nod before her face transformed into a mask of rage, screeching in surprise, "_WHAT?_"

Kanna seemed barely able to hide a grin at finally being able to shatter Kikyou's thoughts of being the most beautiful woman of all. So she said it again, just to bother her 'employer' even more. Kanna couldn't lie as the keeper of the enchanted mirror.

_"Kagome's beauty is now fully grown, she has taken your title,_

_There is no way to take it back; your resistance is futile."_

The demoness in the mirror disappeared, so she wouldn't have to deal with the full wrath of an enraged Kikyou. She'd seen the other smashed mirrors around the castle on bad hair days.

To even her own surprise, Kikyou actually remained relatively calm. Slipping over to her window, she looked down into the gardens. Directly in her line of sight was her younger stepsister. "Kagome, I will never forgive you. 'Futile' is not in my vocabulary."

Then again, neither was 'antidisestablishmentarianism.'

* * *

"Yes, Queen Kikyou, what can I do for you?" Kagome asked sweetly, kneeling before the throne. She happily eyed the cup in her stepsibling's hand as it was put to Kikyou's lips. It was full of water— _well_ water, that is. (The one with Kagome's spit in it.)

"Kagome, I have become engaged. My loving fiancé, Lord Inuyasha, shall be visiting soon, and I would like a bouquet of special flowers to decorate my room."

Kagome nodded, slightly confused. "Congratulations. Would you like red or white roses from the garden?"

"You seem to have misunderstood me. I want _special_ flowers, meaning I need you to travel to the valley a few miles away to gather those lovely wildflowers that grow there."

"Of course, Queen." Kagome backed out of the throne room, head still bowed low.

"Thank you, Kagome," the queen called after her. Once the other black-haired woman was gone, Kikyou whispered, "Soon, very soon."

* * *

"Kouga! As my huntsman, I order you to find the maid known as Kagome and slay her. She has committed treason against me, and I shall have none of it," Kikyou commanded the handsome wolf demon standing before her. "Oh, one more thing... Bring me her tongue; I want to eat it for dinner. And kill her with my grandmother's fork; it's a priceless heirloom."

"A fork? …Of course, Your Highness. A-and her _tongue_?" Kouga asked, gagging just a bit despite himself.

"Yes."

"Right. Why not her heart?" Kouga suggested. After all, isn't that what a truly wicked, twisted queen would do? Eat the heart of her bitter enemy?

Kikyou frowned slightly. "No. Her tongue. Hearts give me tummy aches."

Kouga nodded and began to slowly back out of the room, trying extremely hard not to think about how the queen would know that.

And he grabbed the fork on the wall on his way out.


	2. Life Attempt

Edited: 11/23/11

Disclaimer: I do not own _Inuyasha_ or _Snow White_.

* * *

Black as Night, White as Snow

_Chapter Two: Life Attempt_

* * *

"This one has to go in," Kagome said excitedly as she hid a bright orange flower behind a scarlet rose. Turning to one of the plump rabbits watching her as she gathered flowers, she winked conspiratorially. "It gives the person who sniffs it a rash." Black eyes glittered back at her, and Kagome giggled as if the bunny was actually sharing in her amusement. "And this one will make her feel faint!" the blue-eyed woman exclaimed as she carefully grabbed a green, pink-stripped carnation while holding her breath. "Oh! Here's one that will give her an appetite for pickled fish gills! And one for an earache… This one will make her see clowns!"

Cradling the 'special' bouquet of flowers for her elder stepsister, Kagome searched the field for any more specific ones that she could add. Deciding that the current bunch would cause enough trouble for the queen, the girl picked a few harmless flowers like roses and daffodils to fill out the bouquet.

"I should give Kikyou a lot of balloon flowers, since they're her favorite. They are her namesake, after all." The blue jay perched on the sapling next to her eagerly nodded its head. A few bunnies hopped around her feet as Kagome began the long trek home. "I really should be nicer to her," Kagome mused out loud, twirling a lock of hair around her finger. "Maybe I should take out the violet that will turn her face purple," she continued airily as a few butterflies flittered around her head while they listened. She was practically a walking zoo.

"I wouldn't, she deserves much worse," a man's voice drawled nearby, effectively startling the maid.

Kagome stumbled and spun around to find a rather handsome wolf demon sitting on a boulder watching her, his piercing eyes glinting in amusement. In his left hand he held a crossbow and in his right he held a… silver fork?

Ooh, feel the terror!

"Can I help you?" Kagome asked politely while still eyeing the eating utensil. _It looks like the one that hangs on Kikyou's wall next to that axe from the ogre she poisoned last year_, she realized.

"Actually, I think you can," the wolf told her conversationally as he loaded the fork in his crossbow in place of an arrow.

"Oh?"

"Yes. The queen has ordered your," here he pulled a disgusted face as he aimed the weapon at her heart, "tongue for dinner."

Kagome remained surprisingly calm. Well, surprisingly to Kouga. "Oh, let me guess. The heart thing?" she asked sweetly.

"Yes, something about a sore throat."

"You mean tummy ache?" Kagome asked.

"That's it!" Kouga snapped his fingers in an _Oh, yeah!_ kind of way.

"What'd I do this time?" Kagome asked, still watching his hands carefully; he kept the crossbow level with her chest.

"This time?" the demon echoed while looking at what he thought had to be the most beautiful woman he had ever met. And he'd come across a lot of women in his life.

"Yeah. When I was four, while we were eating candy, Kikyou tried to push me into the kitchen oven. When I turned eight, she ordered a house dropped on me. A few years ago, she ordered a group of monkeys to be trained to wear fez hats and fly… It never worked, and I never really understood the point of it, but I have a feeling it was part of some far-fetched scheme to end my life." Kagome shrugged idly as though she were only telling him a bedtime story and recounting her tragic childhood.

"Flying, fez hat-wearing monkeys?"

Looking almost embarrassed for her stepsister, Kagome nodded.

Kouga had lowered the crossbow during all of this, momentarily distracted. "Why?"

Kagome, not at all scared of the good-looking demon, took a delicate step toward him. "The oven deal had to do with me being her 'reincarnation' or some other nonsense. The house thing was because I was wearing the Shikon no Tama, her favorite jewel. And the monkeys? Apparently I was wearing _her color_. I think, anyway. Kikyou's not exactly the easiest person in the world to figure out."

"Oh."

"Well?" Kagome asked.

"Well, what?"

"Aren't you going to kill me?" Kagome asked calmly, her stormy eyes sparkling.

Kouga eyed the woman up and down. She was wearing a thread-bare, brown kimono, nothing on her feet, and was surrounded by animals: birds and butterflies hovered above her head, rabbits and mice crowded around her feet, and flowers seemed to bloom in her wake. She looked like a myth or a goddess, like she had just stepped out of some fairytale. "No, I don't think I will." He walked to her swiftly, throwing the weapon aside; it landed far away in the field.

"Kikyou is going to want her fork back."

"Kagome," Kouga said dramatically as he swept her into his arms and clasped her dainty hands within his own. "Since you are now my woman, I promise to protect you."

Wait…

What?

Never before in her life had Kagome met this man. Okay, sure, he'd been ordered to come and kill her— she could deal with that; in fact, she'd been banking on him being a kind man based on what her gut was telling her. She had not expected him to be crazy. Kagome began to untangle herself from the wolf's arms. "Uhm… You do that. I think I'm going to just go… and…"

"I'll bring her some other animal's tongue," Kouga suddenly shouted enthusiastically even as Kagome backed away from him. "Kagome? Let's go!" Kouga turned on his heel and began marching in the direction of the castle.

While the young man had his back to her, Kagome exchanged a look with the doe at her elbow. "I think we should get out of here." The golden deer looked back at her with deep brown eyes, almost in agreement.

_Hmm, let me get this straight_, she thought. Her stepsister wanted her life _yet again_. But this time, the queen wasn't a child, and Kikyou could actually get it done if she set her mind to it. All Kikyou needed was a plan, and Kagome's tongue was sure to end up on the dinner menu. With Kikyou older and smarter…

_Let's try that again._ Kagome mentally backpedaled. With Kikyou _older_, Kagome had a much slimmer chance of getting away again. She just needed to hide out for a short time, at least until Kikyou calmed down, and it was safe to come home. A night ought to do it. In reality, Kikyou made attempts on her sister's life often and for small reasons, so Kagome had long since learned that she only needed to get away for awhile, and the queen would lose interest. So why was Kagome running scared now?

Because wolf demons run _really_ fast.

* * *

"…And then we'll have lots of pups and live happily eve… Kagome?" Kouga turned around to find his true love long gone. "Oh, well, she probably needed to think over the wedding details," Kouga mused. Walking happily away, whistling a light-hearted tune, the wolf cut down a nearby boar and carved out its tongue. There was no way the queen could tell the difference.

…Right?

* * *

"Mmm, tongue… the other, other, other white meat," Kikyou said happily as she dug into the hunk of muscle steaming in the middle of her plate. Holding her precious silver fork, she said to the room (empty except for her white, snake-like, demon friends), "Grandmother would be proud of this fork! It helped out her favorite granddaughter." Despite her excitement, her voice remained monotonous.

Of course, Kikyou left out the fact that she was the only granddaughter.

Taking a sip out of her glass, a thought crossed her mind. _What is it with this water? The castle well must be enchanted or something… It has tasted simply wonderful lately._

* * *

Kagome scurried through the woods. A while back, as the sun began to set, she had accidentally left the trail and was now lost in the forest. Not a good thing, in her mind. Long ago, the birds had left to feed their families, the rabbits had lagged behind, the butterflies had stayed with the flowers, and the deer had become just plain bored and ditched her.

She was all alone.

Well, unless she counted all the red eyes glowing eerily out at her from the shadows.

A shiver ran down the girl's spine, her momentary terror distracting her long enough that she tripped over a tree root hidden beneath some trees. "Omph!" She immediately sprawled over… And to the side… And off a small cliff… And onto the hard ground far below.

"Ouch," Kagome moaned while struggling to sit up. Deeming it safe after glancing around, the bruised female rubbed her aching backside with a wince. Frustrated tears formed in her eyes, and she struggled against them, watching the surrounding trees.

It was dark, and the trees seemed oddly black and bent in the nighttime. Leaves rustled, and she could feel eyes on her again. As desperation and stupidity took hold, Kagome began to see jagged, open mouths and gaunt, empty eyes in the tree trunks. Creaking and groaning rang out through the deserted woods and a heavy footstep sounded behind her. Kagome's eyes widened, and she turned sharply around to face the new threat. Her mouth opened wide as sound began to show her surprise and shock as she…

Laughed?

The tiny cat demon cocked her furry head to one side, and her blood red eyes studied the woman in front of her. It tentatively took a step forward and eyed the stranger cautiously. Kagome bent down and began to lovingly stroke the cat's feather-soft fur with gentle fingers. "Aw," she cooed to the feline in front of her, "Aren't you adorable?"

"Mew?"

"Oh, I'm fine. I was expecting a bear or something, but you're much more welcome."

"Mew?"

"No… Well… Actually, yes. I _am_ lost, I guess. But it doesn't matter. I have nowhere to stay tonight, but I don't want to sleep on the ground. Do you know of any good places?"

"Mew."

"Oh, wonderful! Lead the way, please." Kagome trustingly followed the sure-footed feline. She'd always gotten along with all animals, whether demon or regular. Although she enjoyed the company of any kind of animal, she preferred cats. Shortly after setting out behind the white cat with black markings, Kagome began to feel tired. Although she was fit, her body couldn't handle too much more exercise. Her petite form was soon sore from travel, and Kagome panted from exhaustion. Worst of all, her feet ached.

"Mew."

"Good. I'm worn out; I'm glad we're close." Many may find it strange that she talked to animals, but what was even stranger was that she actually understood them. Or, at least she thought she did. "My name's Kagome, by the way. Yours?"

"Mew."

"Kirara? That's pretty; I like it. It's a pleasure to meet you, Kirara."

"Mew."

"I probably have good manners from growing up in a castle."

"Mew?"

"I'm a princess… and a maid… and a runaway…"

"Mew?"

"You're right. You can't be a maid _and_ a princess. Let me correct myself, I was a princess but now I'm a maid. It's a long story."

"Mew."

"Don't worry. I don't mind. Too many princesses are complete snobs, and they can't do anything for themselves. Being stripped of my title doesn't bother me one bit." Kirara walked forward a few paces before pausing and sitting back on her haunches. Within a few seconds, Kagome understood what she wanted.

She was supposed to go through the trees alone.

Well… Here goes nothing!

In front of her stood a wide, grassy clearing with a quiet spring running through it. In the center was a stone and wood cottage, two stories tall and notably large. The full moon provided enough light in the open clearing for Kagome to get a good look. It was, for lack of a better word, perfect. "Thank you, Kirara. Are you sure I can stay here?"

"Mew."

"That's good. I wouldn't want to intrude."

Walking forward, the girl knocked on the wooden door. Getting no answer, she tried the door and found it unlocked. She also found it, after entering, completely disgusting. It was dusty and unkempt, even though it was obvious that people lived there.

"Slobs…" Kagome murmured as she skipped an immediate tour and found the stairs. Upstairs was a large room with seven normal-sized beds, but made up with extremely tiny pillows and blankets. A single candle was attached to the wall, and Kagome took it down to use to light her way. With a good sweep of her arm, the flickering light cast upon the foot-boards of the beds made Kagome gasp. Padding forward to get a better look at the carved writing at the base of each bed, she read out loud:

"Happy."

"Grumpy."

"Sneezy."

"Dopey."

"Sleepy."

"Bashful."

"Doc."

"What funny names," Kagome said with a grin. Giggling in merriment, she turned to her furry feline friend to add, "Their mother must have had an appetite for adjectives instead of weird foods when she was pregnant!"

* * *

Kikyou elegantly swept up the spiral stairs of her tower. A smile graced her lips as the rest of her face stayed frozen in her carefully controlled expression. Kouga had returned with her baby stepsister's tongue, which she had turned into a delightful dinner. Without Kagome, Kikyou would now be the most beautiful maiden of all… And with that beauty, Kikyou would steal Inuyasha's heart!

But not to eat. She rather hated stomachaches.

"Looking glass, looking glass on the wall, who is the fairest of them all?" she asked, knowing the answer, as soon as she opened the door.

Kanna appeared immediately, and Kikyou could almost swear she saw a ghost of a smile on the mirror demon's face.

"_Kagome is alive, she has foiled your plot._

_She still holds the beauty that you have sought._"

Oh, yeah, Kanna was definitely enjoying this.

"_What_? Oh, nevermind," the queen asked and answered herself. "I'll deal with Kagome after I achieve my top priority: obtaining Inuyasha's love. He doesn't know of my sister's beauty, so I can secure our relationship before I take Kagome's life myself." A smirk appeared on Kanna's face, and she quickly quoted before disappearing:

"_Kikyou, Kikyou, you are plain as a board!_

_You'll never get that jerk of a lord!_"

Kikyou was left fuming in the middle of her bedroom, new plots of killing her sibling already forming in her irritated mind.


	3. Seven Odd Friends

NOTE: In the Brothers Grimm version, the wicked queen tried to kill Snow White herself _three _times: first with a bodice with laces that tightened on their own, suffocating her; second with a poisoned comb that Snow White put in her hair; and third with the poisoned apple.

Edited: 11/23/11

Disclaimer: I do not own _Inuyasha_ or _Snow White_.

* * *

Black as Night, White as Snow

_Chapter Three: Seven Odd Friends_

* * *

"Hi ho! Hi ho! It's off to work we go! Bum, bum, bum, bum, bum, bum, bum, bum! Hi ho! Hi ho! Hi _OW_!"

**_SMACK_**

"MIROKU! Could we go to the Shikon no Tama mines at least once in our god forsaken lives _without_ that song?"

"But Sango, my love, it's so heart lifting that I couldn't work without it!" Miroku cheerfully answered the fuming brunette.

"By the way you're talking, I don't think _anything_ about you is working!" Sango retorted before stomping off to catch up with their five friends.

The violet-eyed man pouted for a split second before rushing after his favorite coworker.

Shippou giggled as he skipped in circles around his group members. "It's -**_ahh_**- almost -**_ahh_**- over -**_choo_**!" he sang while sneezing (obviously). The pollen from the forest was irritating his sensitive fox nose.

"Yes, my child. Thy curse is soon to be over," an ancient woman, donning priestess robes, drawled slowly to the redheaded kitsune around an enormous yawn. "Finally," she added under her breath as an afterthought.

Another demon, _part_-demon to be exact, with an evil, dark aura surrounding him, cackled darkly. "Yes! And then I'll be able to set forth another one of my brilliant plans!"

**_THWACK_**

"You idiot!" Sango roared, her hiraikotsu clutched firmly in her hand. The giant boomerang seemed to be sporting a new dent where it had collided with something extremely solid; specifically, his head.

Naraku narrowed his crimson eyes as he rubbed his aching temple. "That was uncalled for," he grumbled.

A demoness, firmly clutching a fan, laughed lightly. "Anything you get, you deserve, Naraku," she spat at the red-eyed man. "It is your fault after all…" She allowed her sentence trail off, because everyone present knew exactly what she was referencing without her finishing the thought out loud.

"Come now! People, as Shippou delightedly pointed out," here Miroku smiled at the young kit, "the curse, our punishment, is almost over!" He laughed merrily, marching on ahead of the others.

"Dur?" a sandy-haired boy asked. His face was split into an idiotic, foolish grin.

"Ah! Since you asked, Hojo, the curse shall finally be lifted in exactly…" Miroku's purple gaze drifted toward the eldest of the group.

The gray-haired priestess quirked an eyebrow (the only visible one since the second was hidden under an eye patch) at the monk. "Three weeks," Kaede finished for him.

"Thank you, Lady Kaede." Miroku smiled kindly at her.

"About damn time, too," Sango muttered darkly, her eyebrows knotted in frustration and anger over livid eyes.

Hojo nodded enthusiastically.

Suddenly, Kagura stopped walking, her red eyes darting around the clearing with suspicion. "Something's off," she muttered, snapping her open fan out to her side before sweeping it slowly across her front. Her power over the wind brought an odd aura quickly flowing back toward the group on the draft she'd summoned.

Shippou stopped to sniff the air and smiled slightly at the soft, feminine scent. Naraku scoffed at the odd power the aura carried but clearly didn't find it threatening… the egotistical bastard. Kagura's eyes narrowed in instant distrust. Sango's sharp senses from growing up as a demon slayer made her tense in anticipation.

And Miroku grinned. His 'natural' woman-sensing instincts told him that whoever the owner of this new power was, it was female.

Yay!

"Kirara?" Sango whispered softly, poking her head into the cottage and peering around at her pitch-black surroundings.

"Mew," was the soft answer. The cat walked out of the shadows of the kitchen and began to rub up against her mistress's legs. Miroku sneaked in behind the demon slayer, his hand accidentally bushing something that earned him a new bump on the head.

"Lady Sango, I do believe you are getting stronger," he said casually, rubbing his hairline, already feeling a lump forming.

"Be quiet ye two, thy power ye sense comes from inside thou home," Kaede told them sleepily, her drowsy voice mixing with her strange way of speaking in a way that made it extra difficult to decipher what she was saying.

"It is," Kagura agreed, as she let herself in behind the others.

"Only one way to find out who it is," Sango stated bravely as she unsheathed her katana. The sharp sword glittered in the dying light of their lantern. Miroku merely shrugged as he held tightly onto his golden staff, and Shippou gently took out his spinning top. Hopefully, the fox cub thought, this person was extremely idiotic and would fall for the trick. (No one ever did.)

They began to lead the way for the rest, and the odd group crept up the stairs. Opening the door a crack, the flickering light fell onto the face of the intruder of their home.

"Oh," Sango squeaked, surprised.

* * *

Kagome's dreams were interrupted, and she was slowly dragged out of unconsciousness. After taking her time getting her bearings, she allowed her blue eyes to flutter open. And seven pairs of eyes met hers: green (Shippou), magenta (Sango), purple (Miroku), brown (Kaede), dull blue (Hojo), crimson (Naraku), and scarlet (Kagura).

"Oh, uhm, hello…?"

"Who are you?" the young woman, the owner of the magenta eyes, demanded sharply. "And why the hell didn't Kirara stop you?" Kirara, sensing hostility toward her new friend whom she led to their home, leapt up onto the bed. The cat crept over and curled up on Kagome's chest, hoping to convince Sango to calm down and trust the new blue-eyed woman.

"Mew," she meowed pitifully.

A look of hurt flashed on Sango's face at her friend's actions. "Kirara!"

Kagome smiled down at the ball of fluff. "She's sweet," she commented. "She brought me here. I wouldn't have stayed, if I'd known I was trespassing."

"Don't worry about that, my dearest lady! Please forgive your rude awakening," the violet-eyed man stepped forward, gallantly sweeping his arm in front of him in a bow.

Kagome raised an eyebrow at his purple and black robes, a style she immediately recognized. He was clearly a monk. There had been quite a few of those back at the palace.

"Forgive us?" Naraku growled, outraged. "She is lying in _my_ bed!"

Kagura chuckled. "And she'll probably be the only woman to ever do so, Naraku."

Kagome frowned, forcibly letting that comment go over her head. "I'm sorry… Naraku, was it?" She unsteadily stood up and reluctantly moved away from the bed she'd been sleeping in. And that's when she noticed something. She was looking _down_ at the six adults (and the one child) in the room, not up.

And then she fainted.

* * *

Something felt very cold and…

Wet?

Yes, that was definitely wet, Kagome realized. Something crept slowly down her neck, and she giggled involuntarily at the ticklish feeling. She reached up and pulled a cool rag off her forehead, more droplets of water following the first one.

"I see ye are awake," here Kaede paused to yawn, "my child."

"Hmm?" Kagome asked groggily as she sat up for the second time that night to look into the old priestess's brown eye. She yawned into her cupped hands and then frowned thoughtfully as the past twenty-four hours rushed through her mind.

"Ye fainted," Kaede explained.

"Really? I hadn't noticed," Kagome answered dryly, smiling weakly.

Miroku chuckled from where he was sitting cross-legged on the floor. "Sarcastic, are you? Just what we need, another one of those."

"Yes," Sango huffed. "We don't get enough of it from Miroku and Kagura already."

"I am _not_ sarcastic." Kagura glowered from her position at the table in the corner of the bedroom. "I am simply very witty."

Naraku laughed harshly. "You keep telling yourself that, sweetheart," he told her coldly as he looked down at his cards. "Got any threes?"

Kagura smirked. "Go fish."

Discreetly, Naraku stuck his tongue out at her as he bent over to grab a new card.

**_THUNK_**

"Oof!"

"I saw that, Naraku!" Kagura snapped, bringing her foot back down from under the table.

"I noticed!" he growled right back at her.

"Will you two _shut up_!" Sango roared before turning back to the now-conscious young woman, her pink kimono swishing with the dramatic movement.

Miroku smiled kindly at his friend. "Calm down, Sango."

"Five years, Miroku!" Sango said in a strained voice. "I've had to listen to this for _five years_!"

Miroku shrugged. "I certainly didn't mind listening to _you_ for five years, my lady."

Sango flushed pink and turned away quickly, scowling in a knee-jerk reaction of denial.

"So," Kagome dragged the word out, trying to figure out why these seven completely different… people… would be together for five years in such a remote cottage in the middle of the woods. "Uhm…"

"Yes, child?" Kaede asked kindly from Kagome's side.

"Don't take this the wrong way, but… _what_ are you?" Kagome blurted out before she could stop herself. The seven other occupants stopped whatever they were doing to face her.

Miroku stood up to face her. "A monk, a demon slayer, a fox cub, a priestess, a human, a part-demon, and a wind sorceress."

Noticing she'd been moved back to the bed she'd fallen asleep in, Kagome looked down at her hands. "I kind of figured that. I mean…" She desperately searched for some words that wouldn't be taken the wrong way.

"Why do we look so normal, except for barely being three feet tall?" Sango asked gently.

"Yeah," Kagome said.

"Dwarves," Sango answered. "We're dwarves. We weren't born dwarves, but we are them now."

Silently, Kagome eyed the seven 'dwarves' critically. Sango was right, she figured. If they were dwarves, natural ones, they'd be stockier. But all of them, except for the child, just looked like they had been shrunk to half their normal height. They had the same proportions as they would if they were the size of an average height adult. "So, then, what are you?" she echoed, perplexed.

Miroku took a deep breath, "A monk, a demon slayer, a—!"

"I got that already," Kagome interrupted while rubbing her temples. "I mean, if you aren't 'natural' dwarves, what kind are you?"

Miroku pouted. "Well, you could have just asked that!"

Ignoring the hurt look on the monk's face, Kagome turned to the redheaded child tugging at her sleeve.

The cub smiled widely. "I'm Shippou! You kn-_fftttf_?"

Not quite catching his question through his surprisingly loud sneeze, Kagome quirked an eyebrow. "What was that?"

Pausing to make sure he wasn't about to sneeze again, Shippou twitched his nose in concentration. "I said, 'You know what'?" Then he did a little cheer and dance when the sentence came out without being interrupted by another sneeze.

Kagome smiled down at the fox. "No, what?"

Grinning, Shippou answered, "I used to be the same size as they are now, but," here he paused to sneeze, "now I'm only this tall." He tilted his head toward his tiny body. He was less than a foot and a half tall. Kagome could easily hold him in her arms.

"You know what?" she asked, leaning forward with her blue eyes twinkling.

"What?" Shippou answered promptly, his own green eyes sparkling in a similar manner. Two of kind, they were.

"You are the cutest thing I've ever seen!" she announced and welcomed the hug Shippou launched at her.

"Thank you!"

"Aww," Miroku cooed. Sango's frown twitched a little, but stayed. Still, she looked closer to smiling than she had all evening.

"Ugh," Naraku groaned, turning away just in time to spot Kagura using her fan to tilt his cards her way for a glimpse. "HEY!"

"…Oops?"

* * *

"So, my lady, you have yet to explain why you are in the middle of the forest all alone," Miroku pointed out as Kagome scooped the soup she'd whipped up into everyone's bowls.

Uncomfortable, Kagome shifted a little where she was standing. "And you have yet to explain why you are dwarves, but not really dwarves."

Now Miroku was the one who looked uncomfortable. "Well, you see… Anyway!" He clapped his hands together, obviously ready to change the subject. Turning to Hojo, he gasped. "_You have my cup_!"

Kagome eyed the monk strangely. "How can you tell?"

Sango switched her gaze to the newest member of their weird group. "Kagome, when we first came here to live together, there was exactly eight of everything. Shippou," here she stared stonily at the fox cub, "went around and wrote nicknames on everything."

"Including the backs of chairs, plates, brooms, beds, lanterns, forks, spoons, and even onto every tag of our clothes," Kagura listed coldly.

"Nicknames?" Kagome echoed, her eyebrows arched in slight confusion.

Naraku snickered. "When we arrived, seven of the cups already had seven names written on them, the eighth one was blank."

Kaede sighed. "Thy child felt thy need to assign us each one, and then label everything else with everyone's new nicknames."

Shippou's nose twitched as he thought carefully about how to word his explanation so the others wouldn't get mad at him if he spilled too much information about their situation. "Each of the nicknames fit at least one of us, so it wasn't that hard. When we were sent here, it was almost as if that woman knew our characteristics and—"

Sango shuddered. "_Shippou_!"

Immediately intrigued, Kagome leaned forward, hoping they were finally getting somewhere. "What woman?"

Miroku muttered quickly, "No woman."

"Sure," Kagome answered slowly, eyeing them all carefully. Deciding she could weasel some information out of them later, she changed the subject. "What names do you all have?"

Obviously proud, Shippou straightened up, already forgetting that he'd slipped up earlier. "I_ s_neeze a lot with my sensitive fox nose, especially in this dump, so I got 'Sneezy!' Kaede-bachan is always so tired, so I named her 'Sleepy.'" The little boy broke off his explanation for a timely sneeze.

Sango cut in. "And I got 'Happy,'" she muttered darkly, as her pinkish eyes glinted with malice.

Miroku chuckled. "I talked Shippou into that one." Sango eyed him coldly, but Miroku simply shrugged of her dark look. "You are positively sweet, Lady Sango, when you aren't worked up."

Sango blushed, and Naraku sneered, looking at the color heating her face. "And _I_ was the one that got 'Bashful!'"

Looking ready to fight, Sango glared at him, but Shippou piped up, his fit of sneezes having passed. "There wasn't a 'Quiet' or 'Disdainfully Silent' nickname, so I thought 'Bashful' would do!" Shippou huffily defended himself.

"Right," Kagura said. "And I got 'Grumpy,' and I simply don't know why!" she complained. "Sango should have gotten it. But at least I don't have 'Doc'!" At this, she cast a sneer at Miroku.

In response, the monk looked perplexed. "I guess I got the name since I'm a man of the cloth and know some healing," the monk explained.

Kagome ticked off on her fingers. "So that leaves… Hojo?"

Kagura and Naraku sniggered, and the demoness commented sweetly, "Shippou said that by the time everyone else was assigned a name, only 'Dopey' was left. Poor Hojo had no choice."

Hojo was too busy blowing bubbles in his stew with a straw to notice the obvious insult.

* * *

"That bastard! Damn Sesshoumaru! Just because he is the 'Lord' or king or whatever, he thinks he can control me," Inuyasha shouted, outraged as he stomped through the forest. He charged through roughly, snapping off branches and crunching leaves in his wake.

He had gone back home and had talked to his brother to try to clear up the 'misunderstanding' of him being the fiancé of Kikyou, but Sesshoumaru insisted it wasn't a 'misunderstanding' at all. The union was needed to unite the Western and Northern Lands. Sesshoumaru was certainly not going to marry a human, so Inuyasha had to be the one to do it.

"I don't want to get married! I want to stay single! I don't even know Queeny! How can Fluffy just expect me to marry her?" Every statement was sharply punctuated.

And so Inuyasha did the smart thing… He left his home and ran away into the forest— without food or water or directions.

Oh, yeah. It was the _smart_ thing to do.

"You are so dead, Sesshoumaru!"

* * *

Kikyou's nose twitched as she stared deeply into her foggy reflection. Suddenly, the fog began to swirl, and a lone figure walked up to the front of the mirror to face the queen. "Kanna, you're late," Kikyou snapped, her cold voice hardened. Her steely gray eyes flickered over the keeper of the mirror, the young demon child. It was the morning after Kagome had disappeared.

"Sorry, my Queen, but I was… busy…" the white haired female whispered.

"Whatever. Tell me where my _lovely_ sister is." The words seemed to burn in Kikyou's mouth, and she spat them out as though they were poison.

Kanna slowly lowered her own round mirror from where she had it clutched to her chest. Whispering a few words, her magic showed her images of part of Kagome's evening the night before. Doing some quick thinking, the young girl responded:

"_Five years ago, seven very different people came together,_

_After a mistake, a curse was laid, one without a cure._

_In three short weeks, the curse shall lift, but until then,_

_Help to the maiden Kagome, they shall lend_."

"So now my sister has help?" Kikyou demanded. "How? She's in the middle of a forest between two kingdoms! There is nothing there but the Shikon no Tama mines, and those have been shut down for decades." Kanna remained silent as she watched the queen's perfect, porcelain skin turn red with frustration. "Show me them," Kikyou commanded after regaining her calm. Kanna sighed and lifted her own small mirror up so that the queen could spy on her sibling. In the mirror, Kikyou watched her sister sitting down in the morning light, handing out bowls of rice and some eggs.

"My lady, Kagome, what are your plans? Where are you staying in this forest?" a man in purple asked.

Kagome hesitated. "I guess… I don't have any place to go," she admitted reluctantly.

"So sorry to hear that," a man with long, wavy hair cooed. His voice dripped with sarcasm.

Kikyou watched as her sister merely shrugged at the insulting tone.

"Then, you can stay here with us, but on one condition," a pretty brunette announced as her pink eyes flashed with seriousness.

"Anything," Kagome agreed. "Hopefully I'll be able to go back home in a short time."

Kikyou snorted as her stepsibling's optimism. "I wouldn't count on that," she hissed to the image, although of course no one in the mirror actually heard her.

"Well, you see…" The brunette trailed off as her eyes swept over the many layers of dust and piles of dirty dishes surrounding them.

"…We need you to do us a favor," the monk smoothly cut in. "If you keep this home clean, you are welcome to stay as long as you'd like."

Kagome eyed him warily. "Why is it so dirty here?"

A demoness blushed with obvious embarrassment. "We aren't tall enough to wield the brooms."

Kagome giggled before sticking out her hand to seal the deal.

Oh, how Kikyou detested that giggle. It was almost as if it magnified the beauty of the young woman. But soon— yes, _very_ soon— she wouldn't have to worry about that despicable loveliness. Kikyou walked away from the mirror, slowly descending the spiral steps of her tower to make her way to the dungeon.

"It's time to step in and do this myself," she muttered darkly.

* * *

Kagome smiled as she dug into the breakfast she'd made in honor of her new friends allowing her to stay the night. But these seven odd friends unnerved her a little. Not because of their appearance or even the evil auras coming off one or two of them, but because of the secret they seemed to hold. For the life of her, she couldn't figure it out.

So far Kagome understood that somehow a monk, a demon slayer, a fox cub, a human, a priestess, a part-demon, and a wind sorceress had been turned into dwarves. Kagome had also overheard Miroku and Sango talking in the garden when she'd woken up within a nest of blankets on the bedroom floor. They were saying something about a curse being lifted in three weeks.

Shippou had happily told Kagome that the group had lived together in the cottage for five years. Well, it would be five years in three weeks. Kagura and Naraku had explained (tersely and in as unhappy a tone as possible) that during the day they all mined some type of jewel nearby. Kagura had specifically used the words, 'To pay off a debt.'

Scooping up another forkful, Kagome sighed.

Who had cursed these seven people… and why?


	4. My Daughter's Obi

If you need help picturing the dwarves, think of all the characters as "chibis," and Shippou looking like his normal self from _Inuyasha_; he's just so naturally tiny!

Edited: 12/06/11

Disclaimer: I do not own _Inuyasha_ or _Snow White_.

* * *

Black as Night, White as Snow

_Chapter Four: My Daughter's Obi_

* * *

"Wait just one second!" Kagome pleaded and held up her hands to stop the dwarves as they shuffled out the front door. "Where are you all going so early in the morning?"

Sango (who, along with Miroku and Shippou, actually took the time to answer Kagome's questions) stopped the rest of the group, so she wouldn't be left behind. "We're going to the Shikon no Tama mines, but we'll be back at dusk. Will you please take care of Kirara?"

Before responding, Kagome smiled lovingly at the white and black cat perched on her shoulder. "No problem; I'm happy to!"

Unable to help herself, Sango sighed in relief. She really didn't want Kirara wandering off and bringing home any more strays. "Good. Thanks. Then I guess we'll see you later…"

"Goodbye!" Kagome shouted as she followed them out of the cottage to wave them off. She watched as the group slowly made their way over the uneven ground carrying their picks and axes. The girl laughed as Hojo tipped backwards from being top-heavy. It took both Naraku and Miroku to set him back on his feet.

Just as the dwarves came to a bend in the path, Miroku turned back to their guest. "Kagome! Promise me something, okay?"

Confused, Kagome stopped waving and called back, "Sure! What is it, Miroku?"

"There are many thieves and demons in this forest. Don't open the door for _anyone_!" Miroku yelled seriously, his eyes for once not twinkling in mischief or amusement.

"I understand. Don't worry— we can handle ourselves. Even if Kirara can't transform to that —um— larger version of herself anymore because of the curse that none of you will bother explaining. I'm pretty handy with a bow and some arrows!" Kagome confided light-heartily, her smile as carefree and optimistic as ever.

"Good. You put my mind at ease, my dear."

"Farewell!"

"Goodbye!" the seven cried as they finally made their way to work.

* * *

"Oh, dear! This place isn't even fit for dogs! They give pigs a bad name! Complete and utter slobs is what they are!" Kagome scolded as she brought her fingers thoughtfully to her chin.

"Mew!"

"Oh, sorry Kirara," Kagome apologized sheepishly. "I guess you do get the point. But how am I supposed to manage this mess? Even I —a _maid_— will have problems."

"Mew."

"Thanks for your offer, but there isn't much you can do. No offense," Kagome added hastily. "I should get started; this will take awhile to finish. But before I do that…"

The woman climbed the stairs to the upper floor, and Kirara trailed curiously after her. It was one giant room and served as a single bedroom for all seven —now eight— of them. Dragging several oversized trunks away from the wall, Kagome riffled through them.

"Sango said I'd be able to find some of her old kimonos in here…" Kagome explained to the demon cat as she shifted through the articles of clothing slowly, not in any great hurry.

And the brunette had been right. Near the bottom, under a moldy baboon pelt and an old fox skin, was a light blue kimono and a dark blue obi to tie around her waist. "Perfect! It looks like it'll fit." Kagome waltzed around the room with the fabric held up against her body, wishing she had a mirror or, at the very least, a clean window to check her reflection in. "It's in pretty good shape considering how long it's been in storage!"

"Mew."

"Yes, I agree." On second thought, Kagome reached back in and pulled out an apron as well. It tied at the waist and only the bottom half of the kimono, but it was better than nothing. "No more excuses left now… Let's get started!"

The girl clapped her hands together and donned a serious expression as she pulled her long wavy hair back with a ribbon. Marching down the stairs in true military style, the blue-eyed girl muttered one last thing with real feeling:

"I _hate_ cleaning."

Therefore, it was no surprise that her can-do attitude had nearly broken down within a few hours.

"If you were true woodland creatures, you'd try to prove yourselves to the human race!" Kagome said conversationally to the birds perched on the shelf near her head and the foxes and rabbits lying on the window ledge. (A temporary truce had been called.) They were watching as she worked her way through the mountain-high pile of dirty dishes. "I know the perfect way to do that, too," she continued slyly. "To prove that you guys are the true leaders of the animal kingdom, you should help me out with the cleaning!" A fawn and its mother cocked their heads at the ex-princess. "No, really! I mean, it'd really show your talent if you could use a dust rag or wash the dishes."

Of course the animals were having none of it.

"Mew!"

"Oh, Kirara!" Kagome immediately defended herself. "I'm not trying to get out of working! All I'm saying is that it'd raise your status if you could show your intelligence by cleaning a house!"

The bear cub curled up on the counter at her elbow gave her a very exasperated look.

"Fine! But don't come crying to me when humans continue to use you when you could easily prove your worth by helping me."

Unfortunately, the crowd of animals refused to lift a paw. Kagome continued on her own.

Collapsing into a chair four hours later, Kagome released an enormous sigh of relief. "Finally!" she announced. The house was spotless. Well, except for under and behind the furniture. Who ever really looked there anyway? Kagome narrowed her eyes at all the animals gathered around her. "And I did it all without any help from you!"

A few of the rabbits had the grace to look sheepish.

"It would have gone a whole lot faster if a few of you had taken the time to dust the cabinets or wash the dishes," the woman scolded.

Kirara rolled her eyes and huffed. "Mew," she replied stuffily.

"Well, excuse me! I just thought," Kagome said primly, "What's the use of being able to talk to animals if they don't do anything for you?" Having received sufficient scolding, the animals departed one by one. "Goodbye! Come back soon!" Kagome called sweetly after them. _Like that'll ever happen_, she scoffed internally.

* * *

"So…" Kagome leaned on her elbows and placed her chin in her cupped hands, peering around the kitchen table. "I think it's time you all told me why you've been turned into dwarves."

Sango winced, but Miroku immediately countered: "We will if you tell us why you aren't at your own home, Kagome." His smug voice said it all: It was the perfect plan! Kagome would never want to tell them, and then they would never have to reveal their secret. No problems, right? Too bad fate wasn't on Miroku's side that day. Granted, it very rarely was.

"Sounds like a deal," the girl agreed easily, a grin tugging at her lips.

Naraku groaned. Reaching over, he smacked the monk upside the head. "Look what you got us into. It's so embarrassing," he hissed.

Exasperated, Kagura rolled her eyes at the demon's dramatic outburst. "Ha! Embarrassing for you maybe, but not really so much for the rest of us."

Kagome cleared her throat to get their attention. "My stepsister, Kikyou, is the Queen of the lands to the North. She stripped me of my title when my father died, and she took the throne. Every so often she tries to dispose of me with odd plans, like the monkey plan. Yesterday afternoon was her latest attempt. I'm here hoping I can wait out her anger, so I can go back home where I can resume my life as a maid," she explained as succinctly as she could. The long pause that followed her story drew a small chill down her spine, but soon, everyone's reactions bombarded her.

"What title?"

"Monkeys?"

"Queen? As in… as in… _the_ queen?"

"Monkeys?"

"'Latest attempt?' How many times has she tried to kill you?"

"_MONKEYS?"_

The barrage of questions stopped only after Kagome sneezed, which caused all seven of the dwarves to automatically say, "Bless you."

"Now that I have your attention…" Kagome sniffed delicately and tried to pick her words carefully. Maybe her explanation hadn't been as clear as she had thought it was. "I was a princess, but I'm a maid now. Yes, Kikyou is _the_ queen, but we have different parents. And they were flying, fez hat-wearing monkeys."

"Why fez hats?" Miroku responded quickly, having been the one who repeatedly asked about the monkeys.

"…Because it is Kikyou's favorite kind of hat?" Kagome suggested helplessly. "I don't know. She's…" The maid trailed off, searching fruitlessly for the right word.

"Insane?" Sango seriously suggested. When Kagome shot her a not-very-princess-like look, Sango continued, "Really, I'd have to go with insane. Who'd try to murder her own sister?"

"Kikyou's not insane! She's simply… different," Kagome immediately defended her stoic sister. "She's a bit on the odd side, but only because she has different interests and ideas on how to solve problems. 'Insane' is a strong word…"

Slanting the girl a confused look, Sango decided to shrug it off. "If you say so," she said slowly, clearly not agreeing.

"Anyway! Kikyou has fits of… jealousy and rage and anger. We all have the right to be selfish sometimes, right? She just has a few more of these fits than the average person," Kagome rationalized. "I was hoping I'd only need to lie low for a night or two, but it looks like it'd be better if I took more time in retrospect."

There was another somewhat awkward moment of silence before Sango sighed unhappily. "I guess it's our turn," the brunette muttered while glaring at the monk.

Naraku sneered in a pouty sort of way. "Do we really have to?"

"The monk was the only one who said it, not us," Kagura complained.

"Yes, but I did _promise_." Miroku batted away all the glares sent in his direction.

"So?" Kagome pressed, setting her elbows on the table and leaning into her hands eagerly. She almost smiled in anticipation but didn't want the others to get the wrong idea.

"Have ye heard of thy Shikon no Tama?" Kaede asked Kagome, who was secretly beginning to think the way the old woman talked was only a well-played call for attention.

"Yes." Kagome blinked at them, wondering what the gem had to do with a curse that had turned seven people/demons/priestesses/things into dwarves. "Kikyou had a sphere made of the jewel. That's why she made one attempt on my life, because I was wearing it. It's her favorite stone."

"All right, then you've heard of how rare it is, and that there was only one place it could be found in the world?" Sango asked.

"Yeah, the mines in this forest. I heard they were depleted!" the girl answered.

"Wrong." Naraku glowered. "That was a rumor sent around, so no one else would use the mines. I found that out—"

"— And hired us," Kagura slipped in, studying her long, crimson nails with a frown. Her shoulders were tense; it was obvious this wasn't her favorite story to tell.

"Hired?" Kagome echoed.

"Yeah. Naraku needed Miroku, Kaede, and I to protect the camp from demons while he was mining for more Shikon no Tamas," Sango hissed, her eyes flashing dangerously at Naraku.

The demon, in turn, chuckled nervously.

"We're distant cousins, and he promised me a share of the profits," Kagura added, her voice low and growly in a way that would have scared Kagome if it was directed at her.

Here, Miroku tilted his head in the direction of the human and the fox cub. "Hojo had an accident— a rock fell on his head, but before that, he was a brilliant rock expert. Shippou lived nearby and volunteered to help us for a small fee, because he could fit into the smaller caverns."

"Oh," Kagome said at a loss for words. "Okay… but how does the curse fit into all this?"

"Well," Sango started slowly, feeling out the words carefully. "We came to the mines to search for more of the stone."

"And we were caught by thy powerful guardian of thy Shikon no Tama mines," Kaede added.

"Midoriko," Kagura hissed. The wind demoness said the protector's name like it was poison on her tongue, upset with what the woman had done to them all.

The only person at the table without a sour look on their face was Miroku, who remained as calm and cheerful as ever. "I really don't understand why I'm the only one here who doesn't blame her! She was the keeper of the jewel, and we were trespassing; it was only fair we got punished."

"How?" Kagome asked.

"You see," Naraku said coldly, "Midoriko is no longer of this world, but her magic is. Very much so."

Kagura sighed. "We were allowed to keep our abilities, but we were forced into these," she looked down at herself disgustedly, "bodies."

"Oh, I see," Kagome muttered faintly.

"So," Miroku continued, "Midoriko-sama assigned us to mine for more Shikon no Tamas for five years as our punishment. In two weeks and five days, not counting today, we shall finally be free of the curse!"

"This cottage is close to the mining site, so she allowed us to live here," Sango muttered.

There was a moment as Kagome absorbed their story, but she had no choice to shake her head in bemusement. "I think I understand all this, but what I don't get is why this would be so embarrassing to you all."

Kagura eyed her cousin darkly. "The reason we went through all this was for Naraku. Do you know why he insisted on this?"

"To make money?" Kagome responded, the answer obvious.

"Because he was convinced that there was only one actual Shikon no Tama, and that it was all-powerful or some such nonsense. He wanted to 'corrupt' it and use it to rule the world!" Kagura shouted, outraged. "I guess he didn't get the memo that almost every member of every royal family on the planet had one. And then some!"

"I'm sorry if I was locked in a cave for ten years and missed out on the goings-on of the world!" Naraku spat.

"Good. You _should_ be sorry. The only reason why I haven't dismembered, disemboweled, and decapitated you in the slowest and most painful way possible— _yet_— is because these five years won't add to our age," Kagura growled menacingly.

The mental image of the destruction Kagura just described made Kagome wince girlishly. "I didn't need to picture that…"

The monk groaned. "Kagura—"

"_Lady_ Kagura!" Kagura slipped in.

"—We just ate!" Miroku finished smoothly, ignoring her correction.

"So?" the demoness retorted.

Already understanding the dynamics of the group too well after only one day, Kagome shook her head dismissively and stood from the table. "I think I'm going to go to sleep now."

"I'll join you," Sango grumbled. When she caught Miroku waggling his eyebrows suggestively at her, she shut him down with a cold look and a knock upside the head. "Not in the same bed, of course."

As the two women trudged up the stairs (Sango taking twice as long as Kagome, so the girl had to slow her pace), Kagome asked, "So, that's why you're dwarves, and why you live together?"

"Yes, and it's also why I'm stuck mining a precious gem for a dead priestess when I could be off with my brother slaying demons for cash." Sango yawned widely, absentmindedly putting the back of her hand to her mouth to cover the action.

"Goodnight, Sango," Kagome mumbled. She slipped between the covers of her own bed, drifting off to sleep as soon as her head touched the pillow.

"Goodnight."

* * *

"Do not open the door for _anyone_," Miroku repeated sternly, sounding as serious as he had the day before.

"Of course, Miroku. Have fun working at the mine!" Kagome called cheerfully.

With a scoff, Sango tossed her long brown hair over one shoulder. "Never use the words 'fun' and 'work' in the same sentence again."

"Well, if you ask that sweetly… Goodbye!" As soon as all seven of her roommates disappeared around the bend, Kagome backtracked into the cottage, locking the door behind her. Within a few minutes, she was in the kitchen, her hands busy with several ingredients. "Mmm," Kagome murmured as if lost in a trance. "Smells good, doesn't it?"

"Mew!" Kirara eagerly agreed from where she perched on the counter.

Kagome smiled cheerfully as she rolled the dough out. After brushing her powdered hands on the apron, she picked up a sharp knife to slice some apples. Almost immediately, she accidentally nicked a finger.

"Ouch!" The girl stuck her finger into her mouth and sucked on it, using her other hand to fold the fruit into the dough and slit holes in the lumpy top. Walking over to the kitchen window, she opened the wooden shutters. Finally pulling her forefinger out of her mouth, she leaned out and took in a deep breath of the fresh air:

"Forest animals, please help me!"

Sitting back, Kagome waited, her eyes trained on the sky.

* * *

Less than half a mile away, Inuyasha suddenly snapped awake.

"_Shit_!" he cursed as his golden eyes opened only to close again a split second later. The light burned his eyes, and he groggily and very confusedly tried to figure out why he'd startled awake. It wasn't even noon yet…

Suddenly, a lilting voice floated toward him on the wind; straining his ears, he only heard the word 'help' faintly.

Wondering if someone was in trouble, Inuyasha tried to hear more, his ears flicking back and forth atop his head as if for better reception. In the end, he decided he'd imagined it. The voice he'd hear, however faint, was too soft and sweet to be anything other than his imagination. He was hoping to hear the singing voice from the castle again.

"Just the wind," he mumbled in disappointment as he uncomfortably fell back into an uneasy sleep.

* * *

Much closer than the half demon, someone else heard Kagome's words. Gray eyes flashed with a hint of both excitement and malice. "Good, good, I didn't get lost…"

* * *

Kagome giggled as a robin, blue jay, and golden finch swooped into the kitchen through the window. "Hello! I could use your help."

They chattered and chirped back at her while fluttering near the crown of her head. Kagome giggled again as the tip of a blue wing brushed her ear, tickling her.

"See, here? It's an apple pie! I was wondering if you'd be so kind as to put on the finishing touches?" Kagome asked politely while gesturing at the counter. The three birds cocked their heads at their friend before eyeing the pie carefully. Finally, they gently landed on the crust to place the slightest indentations with their claws, tracking an intricate pattern across the top of the pie. "Thank you! It looks wonderful, doesn't it?"

Several more tweets later, the birds swooped right back out the window they had flown in from. Kagome watched them go with a faint smile on her face.

Kirara grumpily watched her dinner fly away.

"We'll go fishing later," Kagome promised as she moved to set the pie in the fire pit. It would finish baking around the time the others came home because of the low flame. "Perfect."

"Yes, it is. That pie looks beautiful, dear, did you make it yourself?" a creaky old voice commented, startling Kagome.

Clutching a hand fearfully to her chest, the girl whirled around to face the newcomer. A thin, frail woman stood at the kitchen window. She wore ragged gray kimono that matched her gray eyes, peering out from behind many layers of wrinkles.

"Can I help you, ma'am?" Kagome asked, her voice friendly and sweet despite any suspicion. She walked closer to the window but remained more than an arm's length away.

_She always was too polite for her own good_, the old hag thought darkly. "Yes, my dear. I have been walking all morning and was hoping that the owner of this cottage would be so kind as to… refresh my thirst?"

Only a beat passed as Kagome considered the situation. Really, the old woman looked so tired and thirsty… With a smile, Kagome unlatched the back door and swung it open, Miroku's earlier warning fleeing instantly.

"Sit here for a few minutes, ma'am, well I go to the well."

The traveler nodded before settling comfortably at the table. Kirara hissed and snarled at the newcomer, her back arched and her hair standing in a ridge along her spine.

"Kirara!" Kagome scolded. "I'm sorry," she told the woman sincerely. "She isn't normally like this. Please ignore her."

"Of course, dear."

"Thank you. I'll be back as soon as I can," Kagome promised as she left the cottage. The well was less than a minute away, but it provided plenty of time for Kagome to think about the old woman. _Those eyes, they look so familiar_, she thought as she hauled up a bucket at the bottom of the well. There was only an inch of water, and Kagome mentally noted to tell the dwarves that any future water would have to come from a spring. The well seemed awfully low if not nearly completely dry.

Practically skipping back into the kitchen, Kagome gently took down one of the eight cups, the one she'd been using that had no name. Smiling at the visitor, she poured the water in but became distracted when she noticed something in the old woman's hands. "Oh! What is that? It's beautiful," the girl gasped as she set the cup at the crone's elbow.

The woman chuckled as she brought the cup to her cracked, old lips. _This water is good, but I have yet to find a well as delicious as the one at the castle_, she noted sadly. "Yes, my dear. This obi was my daughter's. She passed away a little while ago, and I was hoping to find a pretty young lady worthy of wearing it to do my daughter proud," the old woman said. Twisted in her ancient, bony, wrinkled hands was a long strip of cloth. It was silk, midnight blue. Pictures of flowers were delicately hand sewn along the edges. The fabric was the perfect length and width to wrap around a woman's waist over her kimono.

"It's beautiful," Kagome repeated, everything else forgotten. Almost unbidden, she took a step closer, her eyes unable to look away from the obi, drinking in its beauty. "I'm so sorry to hear about your daughter. What a horrible thing to have to go through!"

The old woman laughed lightly. "She was a pretty little thing! She lived well in this life and will be missed greatly." The crone then seemed to turn her gaze to Kagome with more scrutiny. "She was about your size," her old voice whispered. "I think," she continued slowly, "that this obi would fit you perfectly. It would match your kimono and beautiful blue eyes!"

"Oh, but I couldn't," Kagome announced even as her hand reached for the fabric. It was almost as if her very being was being drawn toward it.

"I insist," the old woman said gravely as she handed the obi over. "Try it."

Kagome smiled gratefully. "Thank you, I think I will."

The maid then slowly undid the apron and obi borrowed from Sango and wound the new obi over her kimono in their place. "It's so soft," Kagome whispered as she brushed her fingers over the fabric. Her thoughts couldn't only spin around how beautiful it looked, and any others drifted away.

But then, suddenly, panic rippled through her body.

The fabric was constricting, pulling tighter, and at first Kagome believed she was imagining it. The tightness grew until spots danced before her eyes. "What…?" Kagome gasped, turning a startled gaze to the older woman. "_Wha_…?" she tried again, more forcefully. Her breath was coming harsher, and the obi constricted painfully until Kagome could barely pull in any air at all. Her lungs were screaming, and her numb fingers, no matter how much they struggled, couldn't loosen the obi.

"…Help…" she managed to whisper to the old woman even as her vision grew dark, the lightheadedness threatening to overtake her. Slowly, her legs could no longer hold her weight, and the girl slipped sideways to the floor. The last thing her eyes held was that of the old hag slowly becoming taller and fuller— and younger, much younger. The soft gray eyes became harder and sharper as the woman slowly transformed into a very familiar figure.

"…_Kikyou…_" Kagome's dying breath whispered.

* * *

"Kagome?" Sango called as the dwarves stepped into the cottage through the front door.

Miroku took a deep breath. "Wow, something smells good!"

The others mirrored his actions, and Shippou chirped proudly, "It's apple pie! I can smell the fruit."

"Kagome really shouldn't have!" Sango said as she, along with the others, turned their steps toward the kitchen.

"Kagome, it smells great!" Miroku announced as he pushed the door open.

But the maiden wasn't there.

With confused expressions, the dwarves, one by one, filed into the airy kitchen. "Kagome?" Sango called.

And that's when she saw the lifeless form on the ground.

"Oh no…" she gasped as she lifted a hand to her mouth in horror. "_KAGOME_!"


	5. The Clearing

So, not much to say except that Inuyasha will meet Kagome this chapter, and I created the curse storyline, because I felt the need to give a reason for the dwarves living and working together when they were so different.

Edited: 12/22/2011

Disclaimer: I do not own the story of _Snow White_ or _Inuyasha_.

* * *

Black as Night, White as Snow

_Chapter Five: The Clearing_

* * *

It was weird, to say the least.

Kagome knew she was dead, but she didn't feel like it—not really and truly. It was almost as if she was at the brink of awakening. Not dead, just deeply asleep. And she could hear people. She could hear voices, yet they were detached and faded.

Although she felt like she was eavesdropping, she ignored it and listened in.

"Kikyou must have done it!" a very Miroku-sounding person announced.

"Really? Like none of us could have figured that one out!" Sango snapped.

"I was just saying," the monk retorted, sounding a little hurt.

"She's dead! Kagome is _dead_!" Shippou wailed.

**_SMACK_**

"Ouch! You big bully, what was that for?" Shippou whined.

"You were getting annoying," Naraku huffed.

"But she's dead!" Shippou yelled right back.

"No, she isn't!" Miroku shouted to stop the argument.

"Yeah, she is," five voices, excluding Hojo, yelled back at him.

"No, seriously! All we need to do is take that magical obi off," Miroku told them calmly.

**_THWACK_**

Kagome winced at the sound of flesh connecting with flesh. That had sounded like it really hurt. Poor Miroku, Sango certainly hit hard.

"_DON'T GET PEOPLE'S HOPES UP, YOU STUPID MONK_!" Sango roared, causing Kagome to wince again at the volume of her voice.

She wanted to just sit up and yell at them all that she was alive, and it was really rude to yell when someone was trying to sleep. But, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't move. Not even to breathe, but somehow that didn't really scare her.

Miroku muttered some very un-Miroku-like curses (that caused Kagome to secretly smile to herself) before continuing on. "No, really. I've read about something like this. All you need to do is remove the obi, and her breath will come rushing back, essentially reviving Kagome."

"No, it won't! She's dead!" Sango shouted.

"Yes, it will," Miroku said calmly.

"Shut up! It won't!"

"Yes, it _will_."

"No!"

"Yes."

"No!"

"Fine!" Kagome could just picture Miroku throwing his hands up, exasperated as he shouted this. "I'll show you." There were a few echoing footsteps as the monk came closer, and Kagome felt a slight tug as he grabbed one end of the obi. With a single pull, the obi was ripped off.

Kagome felt the air rush in and expand her lungs. Panting slightly to make up for the several hours that she had been deprived of precious oxygen, she sat up. "So, uhm… Hello, everyone?"

The seven dwarves blinked.

The dead body was moving!

"Kagome?" Sango asked hesitantly.

"How'd you do that?" Kagura rounded on Miroku. "Even my dance of the dead can't get corpses to _talk_! You're going to teach me, monk!"

Miroku rubbed the back of his neck. "Uhm, Kagome?"

"Huh?" Kagome asked intelligently while still gasping for breath.

Miroku turned to her with a still face and held out the obi. "Without this, there isn't anything holding your kimono closed. Just thought you'd like to know."

Kagome gasped, Naraku sneered, Kagura winced, Shippou and Hojo blushed, Kaede sighed, exasperated…

…while Sango slammed her bone boomerang into the side of Miroku's head.

Needless to say, Miroku didn't do much talking the rest of that evening.

* * *

Kikyou glided smoothly down the steps to her dungeon.

"Urasue?" she called out as she stepped into the dark stone room. Shelves on all sides housed healing herbs and killer poisons. Odd things to have in the same room, but Kikyou ended up using both often.

And old hag appeared from the back room. She was ancient and looked just like the old woman who had just made an attempt on Kagome's life, except her eyes were stark black and not gray; it was Urasue who Kikyou had modeled her disguise on. "Yes, my dark queen?"

Smiling slightly, Kikyou drew closer to the sorceress. "I just returned. The obi worked perfectly; I watched her take her last breath."

"Lovely," Urasue complemented with a nod. She hesitated before lowering her head, murmuring, "I am glad this plan worked, but I am still sorry about your monkeys."

Immediately, Kikyou clasped a hand to her mouth as she was overwhelmed with sadness at the words. "My monkeys," she breathed. "Whatever did happen to them?"

The sorceress shrugged, her old shoulders creaking with the movement. "There was an incident including a pail of water— all that remained was a pile of goo and the fez hats."

"Oh, well, I suppose it doesn't matter in the end. We succeeded without them, Kikyou conceded with a delicate shrug."

Urasue had worked for Kikyou's grandmother, mother, and now Kikyou herself. "Good, my queen. Is there anything else you require of me?"

"No, that is all." Kikyou sauntered out of the room. Her thoughts now were of how without her sister to distract her, she'd no longer have to worry about not getting Lord Inuyasha for herself. _Odd_, she thought. _I haven't seen him since he got the wonderful news of our engagement. I wonder where he ran off to._

_(Inuyasha leaped through the trees, more determined than he'd been about practically anything else in his very privileged life. "I've got to find that voice!" he muttered to himself._

_It had been bothering him all day since he had woken up. What if he hadn't imagined it? What if there really was someone out there that needed help? It's wasn't as if he was some kind of Good Samaritan, but he had nothing better to do._

_Plus, although he wouldn't say it, he really wanted to meet the owner of the voice. Twice now, he'd heard it—once, singing on his way to the castle, and then again when she called for help. He needed to track it down.)_

"Looking glass, looking glass, on the wall, who is the fairest of them all?" Kikyou asked as soon as she opened the door to her bedroom, not even checking to see if Kanna was there to answer.

Of course, Kanna _was_ there; she wouldn't have missed this for the entire world.

"_Kagome is alive; she has foiled your plot._

_She still has the beauty that you've sought_."

The queen paused from where she was undressing, the kimono she used for sleeping lay out on the bed in front of her. "That's not right. You're wrong, Kanna. I was there to see her dying breath. She's gone," she told the demon child slowly, her voice calm and carefully detached.

"_To have the magical item work, here is the key:_

_After death, one mustn't remove the obi."_

"What?" Kikyou's gray eyes widened slightly, the news finally settling in and hitting her like a punch to the stomach. "Since when? Who in their right minds would take it off? The girl was a _corpse _when I left her."

Too tired to come up with yet another rhyme, Kanna merely shrugged. "Grave robbers?"

Growing angry, Kikyou scoffed at the ridiculous suggestion. "Kagome must be a genius! I bet she planned for this, that… that little bitch!"

_Meanwhile, the following morning…_

"How'd you know to take the obi off?" Kagome asked Miroku the following morning. The two were the only ones so far seated at the breakfast table. "You must be a genius!"

Modest for once, Miroku shrugged. "Not really; I only made an educated guess."

* * *

"Feh," Inuyasha scoffed in a grumpy voice. "This'll have to do. If I travel any further, my legs will fall off."

The sun had barely risen, and he had been crashing through the forest for hours. There were so many scents of animals and woodsmen, that he was unable to pick out the one that had to belong to the owner of the voice. He'd searched all night, backtracking and going in circles before he finally realized how exhausted he was. With the barest hint of dawn on the horizon, the half-demon found a wide, grassy clearing.

He stretched out at the foot of the tallest tree. It was time to make up for the sleep he'd lost the morning before. "G'night," he mumbled to no one in particular around a large yawn.

* * *

"Goodbye! See you! Talk to you soon! Have a good day! I'll miss you!" And then, finally, Kagome topped it all off with a perky wave.

"I think we get the point," Naraku growled to Kagura under his breath so that the human woman wouldn't hear him. Thankfully, she was several yards away, standing in the doorway of the cottage. "BYE!" he called loudly back to Kagome, adding his own (sarcastic) wave.

Sadly, this farewell started her on a whole new round of pleasantries.

So the group walked quickly away, but not before Miroku called loudly back, "Don't open the door for _anyone_!"

And Kagome called back with her usual answer of, "I won't, don't worry!"

"That's what you said last time," the monk muttered uneasily under his breath, finally turning away after one last worried glance at his new friend.

One hour later found Kagome in terrible trouble. (As if that were at all surprising.)

"Oh, crap!" Kagome wailed.

She'd forgotten, of course, later on that morning that the well was dried up… Whoops. Then again, the previous day had been filled with all kind of excitement and even her own death. Really, though, all it meant was that Kagome was forced to find a clean spring to draw water from to last them until the following day.

"I wonder where the closest stream is…" Kagome stood thoughtfully with a rickety bucket in each hand. "Oh, I know, it's that way!" She pointed in a random direction and started walking in it as though she were completely sure about her choice. She probably shouldn't have been.

As her usual entourage of wildlife joined her on what they assumed to be a normal, mid-morning walk, Kagome began to sing. Instead of any of the songs commonly sung by minstrels, she chose a soft lullaby to pass the hour she spent aimlessly wandering around the woods. Soon enough, she heard the sound of trickling water, and Kagome rejoiced in the fact that she didn't have to walk any more. Her aching feet agreed.

"There now, we're all done!" She smiled at the deer walking beside her. "Which way did we come from again?"

Miraculously, the animals didn't answer back.

"I guess we can just go this way… I don't know why Miroku was so worried this morning," Kagome swiftly changed the subject. "Kikyou is probably really sure of herself that she successfully got rid of me. How could she possibly know that I'm still alive? She always was quick to jump to conclusions. She'll think I'm dead and not bother to come after me again; it's not like she has some magical tool that will show her that I'm still around or something."

Stumbling over a particularly rough patch of bushes, Kagome crashed into a clearing. The grass was thick and deep green, while the sun streamed down in the break in the treetops, lighting up everything. The area was fairly, but small. Setting down her two pails of water, Kagome scrutinized her surroundings.

"It's so pretty," she whispered. A puff of butterflies flew up and around her head, and a small breeze tossed her hair. Two plump rabbits hopped closer to her, settling against her ankles. "It's so green and blue and… red?" Kagome took a step forward to get a better look at a splash of red at the far end of the clearing. "Is it…" She paused and gulped, forcing herself to get even closer. "Blood?"

Of course curiosity got the better of her, and Kagome crept across the clearing until she was right underneath a large, shady tree. The patch of red was clearly fabric, not blood. Soon, she noticed something else, something that was white or silver.

"Oh, wow," she gasped, finally realizing what was she was looking at.

It was a boy.

No, wait, that wasn't quite right. It was young man.

"Are those his ears…?" Kagome got closer and dropped to her knees in front of the stranger. Leaning forward until they were practically nose-to-nose, she said as softly as she could, "How cute!"

That was the moment the man woke up.

Gold clashed with blue until Inuyasha forced himself to blink. His eyes were scratchy with sleep, but he'd felt some inexplicable worry that the moment he blinked, the owner of those sky blue eyes looking at him would… disappear.

Even after the man had closed his eyes, Kagome continued to stare. She could barely even breathe, despite her best efforts. It reminded her painfully of the experience with the magical obi. _What is he thinking? I just completely pushed the boundaries of personal space_, she thought frantically.

Inuyasha cracked one eye open and sighed in relief when the girl was still there. Opening both eyes all the way, he twitched his nose as the woman's scent flooded in. Lavender, roses, fresh water, cut grass, and anything else fresh and clean in the world… He nearly shook his head, worried that this girl had managed to cast some kind of spell over him. It wasn't unheard of. She smelled like… _Like just after a summer rainfall…_

Oh, man… he was getting nostalgic.

During all this, while she felt his eyes take her in and _judge _her, Kagome stiffened. She wondered almost stupidly if he would see her if she managed to not move.

Which was, of course, completely ridiculous.

"Hi," the man said, almost cheerfully. His voice was rough and tough, and it sent a shiver racing down her spine. Quickly, Kagome tried to determine if that was a good sign or not, but she failed miserably.

"Oh, I…" And that was it. She couldn't come up with any other words as her mind went blank. No matter how much she scrambled to find something to say, _nothing _came to her.

However, the man didn't wait long. He didn't seem much interested in hearing her saying anything else. In fact, he didn't seem interested in that particular function of her mouth. Instead, he used her momentary helplessness to crush his lips against hers.

Blue-gray eyes going wide, Kagome gasped, which then allowed an opening for the stranger's probing tongue.

Just what could he be _thinking_? You did not wake up and kiss random, completely innocent women. The nerve of him…!

And no matter how much it made her heart pound, or how good it felt when he weaved his fingers into her hair, it was still a stolen kiss. Her _first_ kiss, even. Unasked for and most definitely not granted.

When he showed no signs of stopping, Kagome fought against the feeling of frustration welling in her stomach. She refused to allow herself to be swept away by such a surreal moment. He may have begun the kiss, but she decided it was only fair that she made the first move to _finish _it. Summoning what strength she had (for some reason, she was feeling awfully weak in the knees), the girl began to pull away… and very nearly screamed in aggravation when the man kept her in place by cupping her jaw with a clawed hand.

Enough was enough. Kagome had to stop this indecent (and slightly wonderful) experience before it completely demolished her pride (and her senses)!

Almost—but not quite—feeling guilty about what she planning, Kagome bit down on his tongue, causing the half-demon to yelp and leap backward, only to crash into the tree he had been sleeping against. Using leverage from where her hands were on his shoulders (_I wonder how those got there…_), she kneed him rather harshly.

Taking advantage of his confusion (and pain), Kagome lurched to her feet and ran as quickly as she could from the clearing, miraculously managing to not crash into too many things along the way.

Inuyasha, forcing himself to ignore the pain flooding his system, stood up to watch her go. "Ow…" he muttered, his voice only slightly higher pitched than usual.

Kagome, just out of sight, leaned against a tree to catch her racing breath. Mentally kicking herself over her choice of how she'd taught him a lesson, she reluctantly slunk back to him, suddenly feeling very badly about her actions. It had been shock, she told herself, which had made her act so unladylike.

_I'm going to regret this!_ she mentally scolded herself as she pecked the poor, abused boy on the cheek. "I'm sorry about that," she whispered as she, for the second time, ran out of the clearing, feeling utterly horrified at what she'd just done.

"Yeah, okay…" he answered in a daze to a girl who was no longer there.

Eyeing the spot she'd just occupied, Inuyasha twitched his nose in thought. That voice…

"I think I'm in love," was his last coherent thought and words before he crumpled to the forest floor in the fetal position.

* * *

"Uh-oh," Kagome winced inwardly as she finally pushed open the kitchen door to find…

…seven very angry faces staring back at her.

"Kagome? Where were you?" Sango demanded, her arms crossed against her chest. She stalked forward, forcing Kagome to take a step away.

"I…"

"We've been home for over an hour!" Naraku hissed. His concern momentarily confused and touched Kagome.

"Um…"

"Why do you smell like a half-dog demon?" Shippou asked innocently.

Kagome blinked blankly… and then began to turn a very bright, embarrassed pink.

"What?" Miroku asked, dumbfounded, as he turned to face the fox cub.

"There's a new scent all over her," Shippou answered with a shrug. "It smells male and like a dog demon. And human, too… so he's a half-demon."

"So that's what he was!" Kagome snapped her fingers, grinning with the realization.

"Er… Kagome? A male dog demon?" Miroku quirked his eyebrows as thoughts whirled through his brain. Bad, dirty thoughts, of course. This was Miroku, after all.

"_Half_-demon," Shippou corrected promptly.

"Okay… So, moving on…?" the girl said, snapping her finger to gain their attention once more. "There's no more water in the well, so I had to go get— _SHIT_!" Kagome broke off in a curse, remembering the buckets she'd dropped earlier during her encounter with the mystery man.

"Kagome!" Kaede cried as she covered Shippou's ears.

Shippou blinked.

"I can still hear…"

"Oh. Ye can?" Kaede hesitantly removed her callused hands.

"I," Kagome began, rubbing the back of her head, ashamed. "…I kind of forgot the water and the buckets back in a clearing. I got distracted…" She trailed off, blushing slightly.

"I bet you did." Miroku completed this statement with a waggle of his eyebrows.

**_THWACK_**

"Sango? …_Where_ on earth did that come from?" Miroku asked as he turned to find the brunette wielding her bone boomerang.

"From off my back, idiot, where it always is!" Sango yelled. "But I was thinking of finding a new place to store it. Maybe in that space between your ears or up your—!"

"Sango!" Kagome interrupted, horrified.

"—nose," Sango finished.

Kagome, along with the other six in the room, sweat-dropped. "Oh."

"The buckets?" Kaede nudged them all back toward the topic at hand.

"Oh, right, of course…I'll go get them tomorrow," Kagome promised.

"Maybe you should take an escort. You are, you must remember, a young maiden. A _princess_ at that!" Miroku scolded, a perverted grin twisting his lips as he imagined all the things Kagome could get up to if left alone. He naturally forgot that she just wasn't that kind of girl.

"No!" Kagome protested a bit too quickly. "I mean, there's no need… It's not like I'll ever see him again!"

"So you admit it was a 'him'!" Miroku triumphantly yelled.

**_THUNK_**

"Ouch. My dearest, was that truly necessary?" the monk whined.

The fight that ensued was loud and dramatic enough that Kagome took it as an opportunity to slink away unnoticed. Too bad it didn't work.

"Kagome?"

"…Yes, Shippou?"

"Why is the scent all over you? I mean, why is it on your skin and your kimono and in your hair and—?"

"In her mouth?" Miroku supplied suggestively.

In absolute horror, Kagome watched as the small child walked a little closer, his little nose up in the air. "Yeah, it's in there, too. Why would it be? Was he giving you mouth-to-mouth resuscitation?"

Still horrified, Kagome clapped a hand to her face, her cheeks flaming. "Excuse me?" she mumbled around her fingers.

Shippou shrugged. "I don't know what that is, and no one will tell me. I hear Miroku ask if he can give it to Sango all the time!"

This comment was light-hearted enough that Kagome found herself chuckling, along with most of the other adults in the room. Sango, however, was blushing, while Miroku looked defensive.

"Did she ever say yes?" Kagome asked the fox, sounding almost too innocent.

"Actually—!"

"SHIPPOU!" Sango roared before chasing the small boy around, waving her fists.

Miroku leaned toward Kagome conspiratorially. He winked before saying, "I'm sure you can guess where the boy was going with that."

Not entirely willing to think about it, Kagome let the comment slide.

"So, who was this half-demon?" Kagura asked, winking and nudging Kagome in a temporary truce.

"No one! And I have no idea what Shippou is talking about. He simply helped me up after I tripped—!" Kagome began, flustered.

"—Right onto his mouth, I bet," Naraku sneered.

"Yes— I mean, no— I mean, I have no idea!" Kagome threw her hands up and stomped out of the room, effectively ending the discussion.

* * *

Inuyasha slowly, and painfully, woke up from the comforting blackness.

"Damn," he grumbled as he rubbed his head and flicked his tongue to make sure that it was still in one piece. "Wait… is she still here?"

He leaped up and cupped his claws around his mouth to yell out for her. To apologize or just to kiss her again or…_anything_ as long as she came back! How could he have just let her leave? He had her, the owner of the voice that had haunted him for the last few days, and he had just let her go!

"Idiot," he scolded himself.

Taking in a deep breath, he started to yell…

…Nothing.

What was he supposed to call her? 'Girl,' 'Wench,' 'Bitch'— and then get kneed in the crotch again?

Casting a glance around the clearing, his eyes fell on something, and a smirk curved his lips. "Perfect."

Now all he had to do was wait. He settled happily back against the tree.

She'd come. He knew she'd come. That girl had forgotten her buckets! She had to come back. And then he'd…

Well, he didn't know what he would do, but it didn't really matter. She'd be there with him. That was enough, right?

Plus, maybe he'd find some excuse to kiss her again.

* * *

Kagome rolled over on her bed. _Who was he?_ she wondered.

It didn't really bother her any more that he'd kissed her. Who'd be able to hold a grudge against that? But… his voice had actually sounded familiar.

But where from? It wasn't like she got out much or met that many people consider the sheltered life she'd been leading up until running away. She needed to hear him speak again to figure it out, and she wasn't really jumping in happiness at the idea. What if he tried something? What if he was some thief who would kidnap her and try to use her to get a ransom from the dwarves?

Kagome gasped.

Her eyes widened.

_What if he's really a woman, and I had no idea? His hair was so soft, and he had such perfect eyes and…_

Oh, wait.

That was just the paranoia that set in with insomnia talking.

Kagome smiled as she rolled onto her back, staring at the ceiling.

"What does it matter?" she whispered almost inaudibly to herself. "I never plan on seeing him again, and I have no reason to want to anyway." Yeah, no reason at all… Kagome absently brushed her fingers against her lips before falling into a deep sleep.

That had been a wonderful first kiss, though.


	6. Meeting Him

Thank you for any reviews and please enjoy!

In the original story, the evil queen (for the SECOND time dressed as the old woman; seriously, Snow White?) used a poisoned jeweled comb to try to kill Snow White.

Edited: 5/24/2012

Disclaimer: I do not own _Inuyasha_ or the story of _Snow White_.

* * *

Black as Night, White as Snow

_Chapter Six: Meeting Him  
_

* * *

"Kagome, don't open the—!"

"Door? I know, I know, Miroku! Do we have to go through this _every_ morning?" Kagome asked sweetly, although a tension underscored her voice that promised a different feeling.

Miroku huffed in exasperation. "Don't come crying to me when your half-demon shows up and—and—forces you to do something ridiculous because you refused to be sensible!" He knew this threat was weak, but he had panicked and come up with nothing better under pressure.

"My half-demon?" Kagome echoed faintly, her cheeks flaring in with a blush. "For goodness sake, Miroku! What is he, my dog?" She demanded before quickly adding, "Not that anything happened!"

Sadly, Sango pulled the grinning Miroku away before anything else could be said.

"Goodbye!" Kagome called as she waved cheerfully, her frustration already forgotten. Whether that was due to her upbeat attitude or the way her thoughts whirled once again around her meeting with the half-demon, even she didn't know.

As the group left for the mines, Naraku grumbled under his breath with a scowl. "Do we have to keep her?"

Immediately, Sango glared at him, her brown eyes spitting fire in his direction. "Just because you aren't fond of her doesn't mean the rest of us aren't!" she protested hotly.

Naraku raised a (femininely) groomed eyebrow. "I'm not 'fond' of her? Well, that's an understatement. How could I ever accept the presence of a priestess?"

"Have ye forgotten what I be?" Kaede countered with a sour look.

"An ancient hag?" Naraku took a wild stab in the dark.

It took everyone to pry the 'ancient hag' off the whimpering bastard.

* * *

"Mew?"

"You're probably right, Kirara. I should go and get those buckets," Kagome said, seemingly agreeing with whatever the demonic cat had just said. Almost as an afterthought, she asked, "Do you think he's still there?" Since the dwarves had disappeared around the bend, she backed into the cottage and closed the front door.

"Mew."

"Well, fine!" the girl replied, sulking. "If you didn't know, you could have just said so! No need to get so snippy with me." Kagome rolled her eyes at the feline.

"Mew."

"Fine, fine, I'm going, but if I get molested again," _Not like I already have…_ "I'm blaming you!" Over-dramatically pointing a finger at Kirara, Kagome stalked from the back door. "Now I just have to get lost to find that spring and then get lost _again_ to find that clearing. Which way did I go the first time?" Kagome asked out loud as she followed her woman's intuition and wandered off.

_Several hours later..._

"Do you think he's gone?" Kagome whispered to the goldfinch perched on her shoulder. It simply cocked its head back in answer, which revealed nothing of course.

Her blue eyes darting around the clearing, Kagome tiptoed out of the tree cover. She suddenly regretted never advancing the priestess powers that both she and Kikyou had shown when they were much younger. Neither woman had really felt a need to use them at the time, but now Kagome wished she had accepted the training. At least then she could have sensed if the mysterious half-demon was still there.

_No men grabbing me for a kiss yet. I think I'm safe!_ Kagome thought as she made a beeline for her seemingly untouched water pails. It was at that moment that she made the mistake of glancing to her left, and she saw what made her heart speed up… probably from frustration. The half-demon was still there.

Across the clearing, Inuyasha's nose twitched as a familiar scent rushed in. _What's that?_ he questioned himself groggily. It smelled fresh and sweet, just like after a good—

"RAIN!" he shouted as he bolted upright, wondering woefully if he had missed the girl when she came for her buckets by being asleep. His eyes darted around the clearing until he caught a flash of blue. There was too much of the color to be her eyes, so it had to be her outfit.

Meanwhile, Kagome's thoughts were running along the same vein. She wished she had worn a brown kimono that would have blended in with the dirt rather than the eye-catching blue one that she had on. For a brief moment, she hoped she was dreaming, that maybe she was still curled up asleep on the floor of the cottage. Or, even better, that she was asleep in her own bed back at the castle.

Deciding that she didn't really _need_ the pails, she began to back slowly out of the clearing.

Watching her retreat, Inuyasha realized how the situation had to look to her. Some strange man had forcefully kissed her the day before, and now, he was staring at her from across the clearing like she was a piece of meat. Of course the girl was uncomfortable! As he sorted through his thoughts, Kagome managed to inch her way to the treeline.

"Wait!" he yelled after her, finally finding his voice. "Hold on a second!" Inuyasha mentally cursed when his gruff voice caused the girl to stiffen before fully bolting away. Thanks to his non-human half, he managed to catch up to her in a matter of moments.

Kagome, too busy glancing over her shoulder to see if the man had followed her, ran face first into his chest.

Instinctively, Inuyasha wrapped his arms around her to help her find her balance. Once she was secure, however, he held her in place so that he could talk to her. "I asked you to _wait_," he pointed out dryly, trying very hard not to be distracted by how wonderful her hair smelled.

"I'm sorry?" Kagome tried lamely before looking up, meeting his eyes. Her mind scrambled as she desperately tried to come up with an excuse to get away from him. Finally, she managed to grab onto a lie, hardly knowing what she was saying but spitting out the words before she forgot how to speak. "I—I really need to get home to my—my husband. He gets worried when I'm gone for too long."

For a just a moment, Inuyasha felt a painful stab in his chest as if his heart had been gripped by an invisible hand. When he forced himself to take a deep breath, he noticed all the signs that pointed to a person lying. Her heart rate had sped up, her eyes were darting around, her palms her moist… Almost smugly, he told her, "You're lying."

Kagome screwed her eyes shut tight, reminding herself belatedly of dog demons' heightened senses. Lying was not an option. "Okay," she said slowly, again trying to find something to say, something that would get her out of the mess she had managed to find herself in. "What if I told you that my mother always told me to never talk to strangers?"

With a guffaw, Inuyasha released the girl, his upper lip snagging on one of his fangs as he grinned. "We all grow up with that saying," he pointed out. "No one ever follows that advice. No one would ever get anywhere in life."

"Well," Kagome countered with a huff as she straightened her kimono. "I'm a good girl, and I do as Mama told me!"

"A good girl?" Inuyasha repeated with a quirked eyebrow. Kagome did not appreciate how amused he sounded.

"Yes, I am," she replied snippily, crossing her arms over her chest and looking away from him with her nose pointed to the sky.

"Somehow I highly doubt that." Inuyasha was rapidly forgetting his earlier desire of wanting to do nothing but hold this 'good girl' in his arms and whisper sweet nothings while kissing her to death. "You should really listen when people tell you things."

"Excuse me?"

Inuyasha growled. "I told you to wait!"

"Oh, that. What am I, a puppy?" Kagome countered hotly, but when Inuyasha cocked his head to the side in bemusement, she burst into giggles.

"What?"

"Speaking of puppies… your ears!" she gasped between laughter. The tension that had hung in the air around them since Kagome had fled finally disappeared.

"Do you like puppies?" he found himself asking, unable to help himself. He was even smiling.

"Not really. I like cats." Kagome's grin widened.

With a haughty roll of his eyes, Inuyasha told her, "Too bad. So, wench—!"

_**SMACK**_

"What the hell was that for?" he demanded, rubbing his shoulder where she had punched him. Really, a little girl like her couldn't do much damage to a half-demon, but it was the idea that stung him the most.

"I am not a wench!" she snapped, obviously offended by his word choice.

"I'll call you whatever the hell I want to! What would you prefer? Girl? Twit?" Of course, he didn't really mean it. In the short time since he had met her, the girl had seemed like a lot of things, but stupid was not necessarily one of them.

Kagome flushed—not in embarrassment but in anger. "I have a name, it's—!" Kagome began before she promptly snapped her mouth shut. She could not tell him who she was. It wasn't so much that she didn't trust him as that she knew that Kikyou had eyes and ears everywhere. There was no way she could slip up and tell a complete stranger who she was without further endangering herself.

"What?"

"Nevermind," she said dismissively and waved away the subject. Her anger dissipated and was replaced with her normal cheerfulness, although it did seem somewhat forced.

"Tell me!" the boy demanded with a scowl.

With a scoff, Kagome eyed him up and down. "What are you, a king? I don't have to do whatever you tell me to do." She felt confident in her refusal. Between his worn, red clothing and the fact that he wasn't wearing any shoes, the boy looked more like a wild beast than royalty.

"Actually, I'm a—!" Inuyasha began cockily before shutting his mouth, eerily similar to how Kagome had done so just moments earlier.

"A what?" Kagome edged closer to him, giving him a sly look.

"Absolutely not. If you don't tell me your name, then I won't give you mine—or what I am!" he snapped.

Thoughtfully, Kagome pointed out, "Well, I know you're a half dog demon."

"How'd you know that?"

"Shippou told me!" Kagome explained as she watched a deer peek out from the underbrush of the forest. After a few seconds, the animal stepped toward her and ducked its head, allowing the girl to pet the soft fear between its ears without any fear.

As Inuyasha watched this display, all he could wonder was, _Who is this girl?_ Then her words finally hit home. "Who's Shippou?"

Kagome eyed his disturbingly jealous-like glare. "Why should I tell you that?" she retorted. Twenty-four hours ago, she had had wildly different daydreams about what would happen when she ran into this guy again. Now, however, she had only learned that he made her emotions go all topsy-turvy. It felt like the very ground beneath her feet had shifted, and she had no idea what she was doing or saying any more. He managed to make her both angry and embarrassed in equal measure, and she didn't exactly like it.

"Because I asked?" he suggested innocently.

"What's the magic word?" Kagome asked sweetly.

"Now!" he answered with a glare. When she frowned at him, he backpeddaled, realizing he needed a different approach. Sucking it up, he asked, "Please?"

"Shippou is my…" She trailed off, grasping for the right words.

Inuyasha unconsciously leaned forward. "Yes?"

"Friend?" Kagome guessed finally, only making Inuyasha frown at the uncertainty in her voice. "I just met him three days ago!" she explained, gesturing uselessly at the deer as if the animal could help her string words together. "At least I know for certain that he's my roommate and a fox demon," she finished weakly.

"So he could tell that I was a dog demon because of his nose," Inuyasha muttered, connecting the dots. He was, however, still troubled by Kagome's word choice. "How old is Shippou exactly?"

"Why does that matter?" she demanded, her stormy eyes wide with surprise.

She was, Inuyasha realized, no longer thinking of him as the guy who had kissed her the day before. Feeling almost hurt, he stubbornly decided that he would ignore their moment if that was what she was going to do. "I was just curious!" he snapped, raking a claw through his long hair, releasing some of his pent-up frustration.

Realizing he wasn't going to let it go, she thought about it. The way she tilted her head exposed a long, pale sliver of her neck, and Inuyasha found his eyes trailing over her skin hungrily. Quickly, he forced himself to look away before she noticed his sudden interest. "Six or seven," she guessed finally. "I'm not really sure."

"Seven? As in, seven years old?"

Kagome stared right back at him incredulously. "Of course! He's still just a kid. What did you think he was?" She laughed before joking, "My lover?"

This word choice wasn't exactly helping whatever was going on between them, so Inuyasha charged ahead without commenting. "Why are you living with a seven year old?"

Kagome slapped his arm playfully. "Because of his cute older brother, silly!" she joked lightly but then regretted it when Inuyasha's eyes narrowed with what she was pretty sure was anger.

"So you're using some poor kid to get to his brother?"

"Whoa! Slow down, I was kidding. Sheesh…" She rolled her eyes, which gave her a glimpse of the sky and the position of the sun. "Oh, crap!" she exclaimed before clapping a hand over her mouth.

Immediately, Inuyasha leapt in front of her, his first assumption that she'd seen a threat. He cracked his knuckles and spread his fingers wide, claws held ready to attack. Just as he was raising his hackles (he couldn't help it; it was a natural reaction for a dog demon when threatened), Kagome pushed past his shoulder.

"I have to go!" she announced hastily, hiking up the hem of her long skirt to free her legs to run faster. This exposed several inches of her long legs, something that most women didn't dare do in that day and age. Without meaning to, Inuyasha actually blushed when he saw her creamy skin. The realization that he was blushing only made him blush more.

"What? Why?" he demanded as she raced away, thrown for a loop by her sudden departure.

"So the others don't worry about me!" she shouted over her shoulder.

"But… I don't even know your name!" he complained.

Kagome paused and turned around to face him. She grinned. "Good! Maybe I don't want you to know!" But then winced at his crestfallen, kicked-puppy expression. Deciding to give him the same goodbye as the day before, she rushed back and pecked him lightly on the cheek, fighting back giggles when he immediately perked up.

"Well?" he tried again.

Instead of answering right away, she made him wait it out, hemming and hawing as though she needed to really think over his request. "I'll meet you back here tomorrow at noon," she promised finally. After some hesitation, she added, "If I'm able to, that is. I never know if…" Here, she trailed off and waved her hand faintly in the air, using the gesture to try to explain her life without having to find the words. With Kikyou, she never knew what the next day would bring.

Even though he didn't fully understand, Inuyasha grinned back at her. "Okay. Deal."

Realizing that she really did want to see the guy again even after all her protests and doubts, Kagome grinned right back at him. "Goodbye!"

Inuyasha watched her leave and smiled to himself, deciding that he'd wait for her no matter what. There was nothing that could make him miss seeing her again.

Meanwhile, Kagome crashed through the underbrush, hoping that she was heading in the right direction.

_That guy is trouble! I'm going to be so late; Sango's going to kill me! Oh, and all the questions Miroku's going to have!_ Kagome thought as she rushed through the woods. Her hair snagged on a low-hanging branch, and it tore out her hair tie. Briefly, she considered looking for it, but she knew she'd never find it in the fallen leaves.

Almost on cue, Kagome dodged around a tree and had to force herself to skid to a stop when a young girl stepped out in front of her.

"Excuse me?" she asked, her voice tremulous.

"I'm sorry," Kagome apologized for almost running into her, trying to catch her breath. Both the run and the surprise of running into a stranger in the middle of the woods had knocked the wind out of her.

The girl barely reached Kagome's waist, and her hair was all stuffed under a bandana. This revealed a pale face covered in freckles and narrow, dark green eyes. She smiled at Kagome, her expression unmistakably sad. "It's okay," she answered.

Something tugged at Kagome's heartstrings, and she crouched down until she was level with the little girl. "Sometimes it helps to talk," she suggested carefully, reaching out to brush her fingers over the girl's shoulder in a comforting sort of way.

Immediately, the girl drew back and a look almost like disgust crossed her face, but Kagome dismissed the odd reaction. "You're right," the girl agreed.

"Why don't we head back to the cottage where I live. We can sit down, and I can get you some tea or something. You look really tired."

"Yes, please! That sounds wonderful. My name is Sumi," she introduced herself, her voice brighter than before.

"I'm Kagome. Let's go." Kagome held her hand out toward the little girl and after some hesitation, Sumi grabbed it. "Do you want to tell me what's wrong?"

"Okay… My mother sent me to the nearby village to sell vegetables from my garden to buy some milk and bread for our family. I didn't make enough money, though," Sumi explained, tears in her voice.

"I understand! Here, we can fix that," Kagome promised as they reached the cottage. She directed Sumi to a chair in the kitchen. "Stay here for a moment; I'll be right back."

With that, Kagome disappeared from the room only to return with a small sack. She proceeded to walk around the room, pulling items off shelves and out of the cupboard before stuffing them in the sack. Within minutes, she had a sack full of food, including milk and bread.

"Thank you so much!" Sumi cried, grabbing the bag out of Kagome's hand with a huge smile on her face.

"I'm really happy I could help," Kagome told her with a gentle smile. "I hate seeing people upset."

"You're wonderful," Sumi gushed as she reached into her basket. She pulled out a pair of chopsticks, the wood carved with an intricate design of a dragon and set with precious stones; they were, Kagome realized, hair ornaments. The young girl held them out to Kagome. "Please take these as a thank you; my grandfather made them!"

"Oh, I couldn't," Kagome said even as she reached out to wrap her fingers around them. She just couldn't help herself, mesmerized by the red stones that were set as the dragons' eyes. "If you sold these, you could buy all the milk and bread you wanted. I could never…"

"Please," Sumi insisted, placing them firmly in Kagome's hands before letting go.

With a please smile, Kagome looped her long hair into a bun on the back of her head, suddenly glad she had lost her hair tie in the woods and had an excuse to use the gift. She wove the chopsticks through her hair, skimming the tips against her scalp, and secured the bun in place. "Thank you!"

Sumi nodded, watching Kagome intensely with her dark, dark eyes.

Grateful, Kagome went to place her left hand on Sumi's shoulder but realized that her arm wouldn't move. Frowning, she tried again, struggling to even wiggle her fingers. Within seconds, her right hand stopped responding as well. Her heart thudding hard in her chest, Kagome looked to Sumi and tried to tell her that something was terribly, horribly wrong, but she couldn't part her lips or move her tongue.

With a jolt, Kagome tipped forward, her legs no longer supporting her. The ground rushed up to meet her, and she cracked her forehead against the wooden planks, unable to break her fall. She lay there on her stomach, her thoughts swimming. Her heart, after the shock faded, started to beat in a steady but incredibly slow pound. As spots danced in front of her eyes, Kagome heard Sumi finally rise from her chair.

"Finally," the girl grumbled. Her voice was much deeper than it had been earlier, and Kagome desperately wished she could move her head to look up at Sumi's face. "Urasue promised you would react to the poison a lot faster. Goodbye, sister dear."

Footsteps retreated from the kitchen, and Kagome finally slumped in defeat, no longer having the strength to struggle against her sudden paralaysis.

As she welcome darkness, her only thought was, _I won't be able to see him again._

* * *

"Not again!"

"Damn it! I told her not to open the door. I told her! Didn't I?"

"Yes, Miroku!" five voices chorused.

"Therefore, I can't be blamed," the monk insisted.

"We weren't blaming you anyway, numbskull! We're blaming Kikyou. She's the one who did this, obviously," Sango snapped, rubbing her temples. "If she had the power to appear as an old woman, she has the power to take any form. I wonder who she was this time around."

"She must be using a magic spell to shapeshift," Miroku mused out loud.

"Well, we need to figure out how to break the spell then," Sango mumbled, her eyes sweeping over Kagome's prone form, hoping she could identify some kind of weakness. This felt like a personal failure. As a demon slayer, her sole duty was to protect people from monster, and yet she had let Kagome become a victim twice now.

"This will be simple. All we have to do is find the item and take it off, just like last time," Miroku pointed out. He reached out to grab Sango's shoulder supportively, but she just knocked his hand away with a glare that told him that now was not the time.

"Do you seriously think Kikyou would attack in practically the same way twice in a row?" Shippou asked. "I mean, if we could save Kagome last time, why do it all over again? Kikyou's stupid."

"Here goes nothing!" Miroku announced, going straight for the sash around Kagome's waist.

"Miroku! I think it's something…else…" Too late, Sango winced as Kagome's dress fell open without the sash to hold it shut.

_**THWACK**_

"I think my head cracked that time, did you hear it?" Miroku asked in a dreamy voice as he tumbled backwards in an unconscious heap.

Sango stood over his crumpled body with fire dancing in her eyes. "Anyone else going to try to undress the princess?" she challenged.

The rest of the dwarves took a step back, waving their hands around in front of their bodies like makeshift shields. "No! We're good!" they all promised at the same time.

"Good." Sango looked Kagome over, taking inventory of what she was wearing. Everything from the kimono to her sandals were borrowed. "Nothing stands out. It's all mine."

"Idiot," Naraku scoffed under his breath, meaning Kagome. "How could she be fooled twice?"

Kagura promptly smacked the demon upside the head. "Yeah, Kagome's the idiot around here."

Miroku, who had regained consciousness, pointed out, "I'm pretty sure our only option is to undress her completely to make sure there's nothing on her that could be doing this."

"Good idea, but I think Sango and I will be the ones to do it," Kagura mumbled, shoving the men out of the room. "Guard the door, Kaede."

* * *

Kagome struggled to open her heavily-lidded eyes. "What happened?" she asked, her voice as fuzzy as her memory.

"Kikyou put poisonous chopsticks in your hair," Sango informed her calmly.

"Wasn't Kikyou," Kagome mumbled, shaking her head to clear out all the dark corners as she came back to life. Magic was funny that way. "Sumi did it."

"Well, if that's what Kikyou is calling herself these days, then _Sumi _put poisonous chopsticks in your hair," Kagura corrected.

"Kagura! Hi!" Kagome greeted the demoness happily as she struggled to sit up, completely overlooking the fact that she'd just almost died… again. She realized that she was lying across two beds that had been pushed together.

Immediately, Sango pushed her back down. "Take it easy, Kagome. If we hadn't gotten those chopsticks out of your hair, then you would have been—" Here, Sango made slitting movement across her throat.

"Oh. Good way to put it," Kagome muttered airily. "Where is everyone?"

"At the jewel mines. It's almost noon. You've been sleeping off the effects of the poison," Kagura answered while filing down her extremely pointed fingernails.

"Noon?" Kagome echoed. A thought niggling at the back of her brain forced its way to the forefront. "Wait! _Noon_?" she asked a little more forcefully.

"Yeah, noon, why?"

"I'm going to be late!" Kagome leaped up only to find herself completely undressed.

Blushing, she wrapped a blanket around her body and rushed off to find some clothes to meet 'her' half-demon.


	7. A Thickening Plot

My Weakness? I am terrified of spiders! Extreme arachnophobia is something I get on my father's side, along with the need to pace for hours on end. We're odd people, in the Middle Ages my ancestors had a tree stump on our coat of arms. That either proves we've always been short, or we had a very good sense of humor. Anywho, spiders seem to find me tasty all of a sudden and I have bites all up and down my lower leg. Its completely making my skin crawl. 

Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha or the story of Snow White, and I wouldn't mind owning aspider free room!

* * *

Black as Night, White as Snow

_Chapter Seven: A Thickening Plot_

* * *

Kanna starred blankly in front of her.

No way! This had to be a dream!

Kikyou was...

...Was...

...Singing!

Oh and dear Lords wasshe was off key! Kanna had to use all of her will power not to clap her tiny alabaster hands over her ears to keep them from shattering. Speaking of shattering...was that a wine glass that just exploded?

Oh dear? How to fix this situation? Simple answer would be to get her to stop singing. Only way to do that was to make Kikyou unhappy again! As easy as that sounded, Kikyou rarely got into a good mood, so it was hard to take it back away.

Twitching her little white nose, Kanna eagerly searched her own mini mirror. There had to be something! Maybe that dogLord guy falling off a cliff or having gone insane from the prospect of marrying the wicked queen? Or better yet...

Raising her voice to be heard over the cracking glass in the background, Kanna happily told her employer something.

"---_Kagome is alive, she has foiled your plot,_

_She still has the beauty that you've sought_.---"

Oh yeah, that felt good.

Kikyou's mouth instantly snapped shut and she turned to face the young girl with fiery eyes. "What did you just say?"

Kanna, not being the slightest bit afraid, said lightly, "The same thing I said the last two times you failed to get rid of your cousin. Tell me Kikyou, would it be that bad to allow Lady Kagome to live?"

"Too bad?" Kikyou snapped but amazingly held up her cool façade. "Yes it would be. It is custom to invite all family to a royal wedding and I'd get a bad telling off if my own sister didn't show up! And if she has more beauty than I do, who is to say that my Inuyasha won't run off with her? He is only a man after all," she snorted.

Kanna allowed the woman to rant. "Alright, so it wasn't my best idea. But she seems happy in the forest, why not let her live her life out in the woods? Who would know?"

Kikyou took a deep breath to calm down. Getting her own stick straight posture back, she said coldly. "I checked up on that curse on those 'dwarves'. They'll be normal again in less than two and a half weeks."

"And?" Kanna didn't exactly see the problem.

"With their debt paid, there will be no need for the cottage any more. Kagome would have no place to stay."

"Oh," Kanna nodded. That put a kink in her plans.

"So, we'll just have to plan a little more. I was hoping the hairpieces were plain enough that they wouldn't feel the need to remove them when the dwarves found her body, so that way she'd stay dead this time. We need a new thing. I'll think of it later. I have a meeting with Hisa to plan our bonfire in two hours."

"Bonfire?" Kanna asked.

Kikyou nodded curtly. "We're finally taking control of that infestation of rats and lizards in the palace." As she began to walk out of the room, she turned back. "I suggest you find something to plug your nose with. It'll get smelly."

* * *

'She's not coming, she's not coming, she's not coming, she's not coming, she's not co-.'

"You came?" Inuyasha breathed as the subject of his thoughts stumbled into the clearing panting.

Inu had painfully found that as soon as the maiden left his sight, she entered his thoughts a little more forcefully.

Kagome looked up while rubbing a stitch in her side and flashed a warm smile. "Of course! Sorry I'm late, some witch tried to..." she trailed off and began to fiddle with her sleeves.

"Witch?"

"Nothing!" Kag said a little too quickly. "You need to have more faith in me!" she announced as she tapped him on the nose. His gold eyes crossed to watch her finger. Kagome giggled at his action. "You're a strange person, did you know that?" she said as she collapsed on top of a log. She was wearing her own brown kimono so she didn't have to worry about ruining something that wasn't hers.

"How?" he growled as he sat down next to her.

"Well," Kagome seemed to think deeply. "I just met you and you seem to have me at your beck and call!" she raised an eyebrow at him.

Inu raised one of his own as he smirked. "Told you I have power."

"No, you didn't!"

"Well, I just did!" He defended himself. Maybe he told her he was powerful in one of his many dreams about her?

Wow, that sounded more pathetic than he'd like to admit.

"I'm strange, what about you?" he asked as Kag's friends joined them.

A few foxes and bunnies snuggled up to her bare feet while a fawn nibbled on her ear from behind. Birds perched on her shoulders and head while a baby squirrel curled up in her lap.

Kagome eyed him carefully, "What do you mean?"

"What are you? A human or a wood sprite?" Inuyasha asked as a rather viscous looking (at least to him) fluffy bunny hopped onto one of his feet.

Kag shrugged. "Use your nose!"

'No way! Your scent completely makes me go out of my mind. I was thinking of avoiding that action,' of course he didn't say any of it out loud.

"Oh!" Kagome snapped her fingers and turned to look at him eagerly. He had to resist the urge to use a claw to tuck a loose strand of hair behind her ear. "I really need to get those buckets today. If I forget a third time, Miroku wouldn't let me hear the end of it."

"Miroku?" Whoops, there goes that jealousy again.

Kagome grinned. "A hentai houshi!" Her grin spread even further. "Hey! That just rolls off the tongue, doesn't it?"

"A perverted monk?" Inu tweaked her ear. "And I thought I had odd friends."

Kagome giggled as her forest friends calmed her down a bit. She felt naturally carefree in this guy's presence. Was that a good or a bad thing? "Oh that's nothing. Naraku is this twisted evil idiotic jerk who only has the brain capacity to think up manipulative plans that gets everyone involved in deep trouble," Kagome complained.

"Sounds fun," Inu said faintly. Should he really let his girl hang out with someone like that?

"Oh, and Kagura! She's the perfect blend of elegance and danger!" Kagome told him seriously. "And Hojo? While he's, um, uh, er, yeah." Kagome finished lamely.

"Right, understood every word!" Inu said sarcastically. "Any others?"

Kagome nodded slowly. Should she really be telling this stranger all about her friends? Of course, how bad could it hurt? "You already heard 'bout Shippou. What about Kaede-?"

"Wait! Oh damn, there's that word again! Lady Kaede? Old miko who looks like she could keel over at any time?" Inuyasha asked a little too enthusiastically.

Kagome sweatdropped, "I guess so..."

"Wondered what happened to her," he said slowly. "When you see her, tell her I'm sorry about the eye thing. She'll know what you mean."

"You did that to her?" Kagome gaped and discreetly moved back a few inches.

Inuyasha saw it.

"It was an accident!" he defended himself. "She doesn't blame me, so it can't be my fault!"

Kagome eyed his claws wearily. "Uh huh. Sure."

Inu sighed. Oh great. Now the most perfect female he'd ever met thought he was dangerous. Which he was, but he wasn't. Yeah, that made sense...

Kagome looked around at the growing shadows. "How could it have gotten so late?" she stood up, effectively dumping a load of animals on their rears. She made a few hasty apologies.

"I could take you back to where ever you live," Inuyasha suggested.

Kagome looked back at him. "I can manage," she still didn't trust him completely.

Inu hid his wince and shrugged. "I believe you, but what's your name? You have a habit of keeping it from me."

Kagome smiled. "Maybe next time."

"Next time?" Inu asked dumbly as she leaned forward and gave a now familiar peck on the cheek.

"Yeah. If I can," Kagome still didn't trust Kikyou not to jump out of a bush and run her through with that fork.

"Feh," Inu huffed but his scowl twitched as he fought a grin.

"Good, see you later than!" she chirped as she walked away, her many followers close behind.

"Bye," Inu whispered as he collapsed Indian style on the ground. Maybe he should sleep in a tree that night. It was more comfortable. "I bet she has a beautiful name."

He yawned and started to drift off for a late afternoon nap. "It'd fit her."

* * *

"How does he act?"

"How old is he?"

"What does he look like?"

"Is he evil?"

"A good kisser?"

Kagome nearly fell over with the force of all the questions when she cheerfully stepped into the kitchen. "What?"

"You rushed off to meet him! What's really going on?" Kagura demanded as she walked forward.

"Um?" Kagome sweatdropped.

"Shippou!" Miroku commanded and out of no where said demon jumped to Kag's shoulder.

After a few sniffs, Shippou announced, "She only smells like him on her ear. No where else!"

"Ear? What does he do, nibble it?" Miroku asked, his mind alreadyat work.

Sango smacked him. "Oh shut up! He could have just brushed past her!"

"Actually, he tucked my hair behind my ear," Kagome said without thinking before blushing a deep red.

And that started another round of questions.

"Quiet!" Kagome announced. "Er, he seemed to know you Kaede-bachan. Something about being 'sorry for your eye'..."

Kaede's look brightened before she began to leave the room. "Then I know all I need to know of this guy. Tell him the next time you see him, Kagome- sama, that I wish him a good life."

"Alright!" she called before turning to her roommates. "Lets see, he has long silver hair, gold eyes, fluffy ears," she grinned at that and the dwarves had to shake her out of her daydreaming. "He's tall! He has a very nice face: smooth skin, strong jaw, straight nose."

"Acts?"

"Don't really know," Kagome frowned. "He seems pretty nice under it all. Maybe a little too arrogant and egotistical, a bit of a jerk. But definitely he means well. He's not nice as in nice, but in his own way," she struggled to explain.

"Good kisser?"

"What?" Kagome shouted outraged while blushing a shade of red yet to be discovered. "I am so not telling you! Not that we have kissed," she still clung to her claim of innocence.

Miroku snorted and rolled his eyes. "Sure."

"Evil?" Naraku asked again.

"No!" Kagome said instantly. "Or, at least I don't think so."

"Kagome, it seems to me that you don't really know him! I say you don't meet him again. What if he's really Kikyou?" Sango asked desperately.

Kagome thought of the kiss and nearly lost her stomach. "Trust me, he's NOT Kikyou!"

"Fine," the taijiya sighed. "Well at least promise you'll be careful!"

"Of course Sango," Kagome said softly.

"Good. Everyone, time for dinner. NOW! No complaints and don't bother Kagome any more!" Sango was definitely the real one in charge of the group.

"Yes ma'am," Miroku mock saluted. Sango slapped him, maybe a little lighter than she normally did, Kagome noticed.

* * *

"Please, Lord Inuyasha! You must!" Myouga pleaded.

Inuyasha scowled at the flea and pinched him easily between two claws. Smirking in a very triumphant way, he then scowled again. "No Myouga. I can't. Tell Fluffy to go screw himself."

Myouga shuddered at the prospect of telling the great taiyoukai such disrespectful words. "But Lord Sesshoumaru commands it!"

Inuyasha growled. He really wanted to get rid of this pest! "How long?" he asked gruffly.

"Not too long, I suppose," Myouga said carefully, hiding his smile in getting his lord to get off his lazy rear end.

"Better not be," Inuyasha stood up and stretched while the flea fell to the ground from the sudden movement. Taking one last longing look in the direction the maiden had disappeared, he bounded off in search of his castle.

'Wait for me. I'll be back.'

* * *

"Inuyasha," Sesshoumaru drawled as said younger half brother walked through the doors.

"What?" Inu barked.

"As full of manners as ever I see," the elder demon sighed. "Where have you been? Your wedding will be here soon!"

"What wedding?" Inu feigned stupidity. Not all that hard in reality.

"You know very well what wedding. Kikyou is getting impatient, I have to say she'll be a good match. She's as creepy and evil feeling as you are."

"I think you're getting us mixed up again, elder brother," Inuyasha snorted.

Sesshoumaru was out of the thrown so fast and at his brother's throat before Inuyasha could even blink.

"Say that again," 'Fluffy' hissed as he lowered his glowing fingers to Inu's neck.

Inu looked at the hand in a bored manner that had Sess raising his hackles in mere seconds. "No thanks, your Lordship," Inu ground out.

Sess nearly scoffed as he let go and coldly watched Inuyasha rub his abused neck.

"Is there any way I can get out of this?" Inuyasha whined.

Sesshoumaru was about to drawl a 'no' when a thought hit him. "Yes."

"What?" the two amber gazes locked.

'Fluffy' sighed as he reclaimed his previous seat. "If you find a young maiden within the wedding date that you'd rather marry, I'll let you off."

Inuyasha blinked stupidly. Well that seemed easy enough. What about her? It was too perfect. He'd already fallen head over heels, all he had to do was get the same reaction from her!

"But," Sesshoumaru stated simply. His tone of voice made Inu snap his golden glance up in wary suspicion. "She has to be of royal descent."

Inuyasha let loose a sting of curses that would have made a sailor blush.

"Language, language, dear brother," Sesshoumaru hissed as their seven year old adopted sister launched herselfinto the room with a servant boy, Souta, while playing tag.

Odd how Sesshoumaru seemed to accept a full human sister but not a half- human brother.

"Good bye, brother," Inuyasha ground out as he stalked away.

* * *

"Damn!"

"What's wrong master?" Myouga called loudly as he clung on for dear life.

"It's almost sun rise and we just left the palace! We might not make it!" Inuyasha worriedly looked around at the blurs that were trees. "Damn Sesshoumaru and all that is under his control!"

"Make what?" Myouga screeched as they narrowly missed another tree.

"Her," Inu said simply and missed Myouga's wide-eyed stare.

Myouga mulled over this new predicament. Things just got a lot more complicated.

* * *

She was there. Just like he knew she would be, and expected. But still, it made his throat constrict and his heart feel like it plummeted to his feet.

She just looked so damned beautiful! Her ebony hair flew in the breeze around her shoulders as her hair toggle seemed to be missing, and her eyes looked around at everything so understandingly.

She was wearing the blue again.

As he watched her sitting there, he seemed to go momentarily mute and unmovable.

Glancing down at Myouga, who sat at his shoulder eyeing him warily, Inuyasha said in the simplest manner ever, "Call me by my name or station and I will kill you."

The poor flea just nodded.

* * *

Kagome looked up at a distant rustle and was forced to gulp harshly.

He just looked so...perfect as he walked towards her with the lowering sun behind him. His blowing silver hair seemed to have a golden halo and his amber eyes seemed so deep as he looked at her. Kagome had to snap her mouth shut in fear that she'd drool as she eyed his body up and down.

She'd waited most of the day so sure he'd come, and he did.

Straightening up, she used his line from the day before. "You came!"

He eyed her carefully and all thoughts of a marriage to Kikyou flew from his mind. Seeing as she'd used his words, he used hers. Tapping her on the nose, he said, "You should really learn to have more faith in me."

Kagome giggled and sat down, pulling him down with her. A butterfly lazily flew around the crown of her head. "Where were you?" she asked innocently as she turned to him.

Inu swallowed guiltily. "Business."

Kagome gazed at him with what seemed to be genuine surprise. "Really? I thought you lived in the forest!" Kagome nearly burst out giggling at the shudder of disgust that ran through him. "I was just kidding," she rolled her eyes as she faced away. Suddenly a sharp prick made itself known on her neck. Kagome's eyes widened as she instantly thought that Kikyou had found her again. Her hand slapped upwards and she looked down as a rather flat looking demon floated on the wind from where her hand had made contact with her neck.

Inuyasha growled at the flea. "Myouga!" he thundered. Both Kagome and the flea jumped. Inu's ears flattened and he looked at the young woman a little guilty. "Sorry."

Whether it was about him yelling or the flea deciding she was its next meal, she wasn't sure. "No problem," she said lightly.

Inuyasha smirked as he heard what sounded awfully like a feminine growl in the back of her throat. "Its late, I have to go."

He looked up surprised. Damn Fluffy! He'd cut their meeting short! "You _have_ to?"

Kagome shrugged. "I need to get the cleaning and cooking done before they come home from work."

Fluffy's words from before came floating back. She sounded like a maid, not royalty. Though it didn't exactly surprise him. "Sure. You all right getting back home safe?"

Kagome smiled at his poorly hidden concern. "Uh huh. After getting lost the twelve times in the last three days, I seem to find the path easily enough now."

"Twelve?" Inu echoed before shaking his head sadly. Only a human could do that. "Tomorrow?"

Kagome nodded and Myouga watched carefully as the maiden leaned forward and kissed his Lord's cheek. "Tomorrow," she agreed.

As the two males watched Kagomewander off, Myouga turned to his master. "Wow."

Inuyasha nodded.

"Too bad," Myouga sighed. "It's either Kikyou or another princess. Sorry she isn't on the menu, Lord Inuyasha. She has great blood!"

Inuyasha smashed him firmly between two palms. "Oh yeah."

* * *

"Any new ideas yet?" Kanna asked innocently.

"No," Kikyou huffed and went back to her thinking position.

Some people may find it hard to hang upside down on a pole while wearing a kimono and drinking mandarin orange tea, but Kikyou found it oddly stimulating. "Grams was right, this does seem to be good for the brain."

Kanna shook her head sadly before disappearing back into the fog that clouded the face of the large mirror where she lived.

* * *

Kagome happily skipped along the path. This would have to be the tenth visit with the hanyou in the woods.

Everything was going perfectly! In the morning, she'd see off the dwarves then clean the house. After that she'd lock up and meet the man and late in the afternoon she'd come back home and prepare dinner for the others.

Not only that, but the dwarves would have the curse lifted in only nine more days and Kikyou hadn't been seen around since her last attempt on her sister's life.

And the meetings with the mysterious man?

She still refused to tell her name, just for the thought of being a tease. Because of that, he refused to tell her what and who he was. They made it into a little game. Between chatting about odd things, they guessed about the other and always happened to get it wrong.

It did unnerve her a bit that he never talked about why he'd kissed her on a mere whim. Not that she minded. It didn't bother her; she was dismayed to find that he didn't try it again.

They never really talked about themselves but about different things.

It still surprised her how quickly the hours went and how easily they spent them.

Walking into the clearing, she smiled when she saw him. "You came!" she called.

He smirked as he walked up and did the customary tap on the nose, "You should learn to have a little more faith in me!"

It was their normal greeting and they switched who said what each time.

"You'd be amazed at what I saw yesterday," Kagome started as he led her to the base of a tree.

"Really, and what was that?" he smirked as he sat down next to her.

"Well..." and the maiden/maid/ex-princess started her tale.

* * *

NEXT CHAPTER: Blossoming Relationships


	8. Blossoming Relationships

So, basically, Inuyasha is still being forced to marry Kikyou and can only get out of it if he marries another royal female. Too bad he doesn't know that Kagome is a princess...Meanwhile Kikyou is still after Kagome and Kanna seems to have developed a bit of a hatred for her employer.

Disclaimer: Je n'ai pas de Inuyasha ou Snow White. (Technically that says 'I don't have Inuyasha or Snow White' but for pity's sake, lets change the 'have' to 'own'.)

* * *

Black as Night, White as Snow

_Chapter Eight: Blossoming Relationships_

* * *

"You said something about being to France not too long ago, right?" Inuyasha asked offhandedly as he lounged in the branches of the large oak tree. The maiden sat on the same branch as him, it was pretty high off the ground. 

She was perched a few feet away where she was gazing out at the surrounding forest as birds ate berries out of her palm. "Yeah...why?"

Inuyasha smirked, while still keeping his eyes closed. "Say something then."

Kagome gaped at him. "I said I've been there and I've used a term, but I didn't say I could speak the language!"

"Well can you?" One golden eye propped itself open to gaze at her lazily.

"...Yes..."

"Then say something!" he commanded. "I want to see if you even know what you're talking about." Inu commanded.

Kagome huffed, "What? You think I'd lie?"

"Of course not!" Inuyasha feigned surprise. "You're a 'good girl'. Your own words of course..."

Kagome eyed him. "Alright."

"So? Are you going to do it or not?" he asked when she didn't open her mouth. He watched as Kagome's nose scrunched in concentration.

"Alright. I'll describe a...friend." She nodded to herself resolutely. "Let's see if you can guess who it is!"

"Feh."

"Il est grand et assez mechant. Il est japonais. Il est aussi assez gentil et sympathique. Il est amusant." Looking down to her lap, Inu was amused to see her blush. "Et, aussi, il est tres mignon et beau!"

Inuyasha eyed her pink cheeks. "What's all that mean? How am I susposed to guess if I don't know what you just said?"

Kagome's blue gaze snapped up to meet his. "Hey! You were the one that told me to speak french!"

Inu shrugged as he leaned back. "Tell me! And start from the top!"

Kagome glowered at the order but decided to do it anyway. After a few minutes of running over what she said, she began the translation. "Hmm...lets see. He is tall and rather naughty. He is Japanese. He is also kind and good to be around. Oh, and fun."

Inuyasha watched her carefully. The 'he' part bothered him. "I'm sure you missed a part here or there..."

Kagome sent him a scornful look. "Fine, fine! I also said he's very cute and handsome."

Yep, there was that blush again.

Inu pretended to concider the traits. "Well...how about Shippou?"

Kagome scrunched up her nose, "Shippou is cute, but not handsome."

"Naraku?"

Kagome smirked. "Well the 'naughty' and handsome part would fit him!" She scowled at the acorn that hit her head from the certain direction of a certain hanyou. "What? You're the one who asked!"

"Keh. Moving on, Miroku?"

The young maiden giggled. "All of that fits him...except for the tall part!" She openly laughed at her own idea. Inu just scowled, hurt that he wasn't let in on this supposed inside joke. "I'd gladly give him the compliments if it weren't for his 'wandering hands'..." she scowled as she unconsciously tapped her derrière as if it was defiled. Which, knowing Miroku, it probably was.

"Next! Hojo?"

Kagome openly gaped at him. "How'd you know?" she blushed. "I was hoping my feelings weren't noticeable! But you guessed so quickly, maybe I should just tell him..." She watched in amusement as the hanyou fell out from the top most branches of the very large tree.

Propping himself up on his elbows he sputtered and the dirt and grass flew from his mouth. "What?!" he roared.

Kagome, sure he was alright if he could yell that loud, began to laugh. "Not 'what', silly! Who! And that's Hojo." She sighed and looked off into the distance with a dreamy expression on.

Growling, the lord leapt back onto his branch. Scooping the startled woman into his arms he hopped down and set her down in front of him. Placing a clawed hand on each shoulder, he eyed her seriously.

It was all Kagome could do to keep from laughing the situation off and getting rid of his worries.

"Wench..." he began seriously. "This Hojo can't be good for you! From what you tell me, he's a weakling. A wimp! No seeing him," he roared.

Kagome sighed. "Gods! I was only-!"

He swept her into a hug and she was cut off as his arms crushed her. Pulling back he looked at her again. "Now, what were you saying?"

Kagome hung her head, a little ashamed after he'd taken her joke so seriously. Idiot. "I was only joking! I wasn't talking about Hojo!"

"Then who was it!" Inuyasha demanded as his mind raced for the name of any other man she could have mentioned.

Kagome laughed as she chucked him under the chin and then giggled even harder as he scowled sourly back at her. Untangling his arms she stepped back and picked up her handkerchief that had held a small meal for them to share.

As she began to walk away she looked over her shoulder; "I was talking about you!"

Inuyasha smirked as she disappeared.

It'd gotten pretty late; too bad she had to leave him to cook for those bastards that took her away from him every evening.

Someday it'd be his home where she went to cook him dinner. And no one would be taking her away.

* * *

"Er...Lord Inuyasha? Are you feeling all right master? You have an odd expression-." 

"She called me handsome, Myouga."

"Well good for you, but if I may, sir. There's only nine days left before your marriage, shouldn't you be out looking for a loophole?" the flea asked hesitantly.

Inuyasha scowled as he was brought out of his fantasy of the Maiden, as he had no other way of calling her, waiting for him as he came home from work. "Shut it, Myouga. I'm not marrying Queeny, we'll get out of it in time," Inuyasha pushed the problem aside yet again.

"Of course, my lord," Myouga frowned as he began to leap away.

He had to find a suitable princess for his master.

* * *

"Mmm, Kagome! It smells great! What is it?" Sango asked as she wandered into the kitchen. 

Kagome spun on her heel and her complete look of utter happiness scared Sango. The brunette took a hesitant step backwards, afraid that Kagome's bright smile and white teeth would give her sunburn.

"Its Oden!" the blue eyed woman chirped. She then went back to the meal while chanting 'oden oden oden' under her breath.

"Right," Sango smiled; she was in a good mood for once. Miroku had kept his distance, so had Kikyou, and Naraku didn't get any more 'brilliant' ideas. Curse whoever created that evil man.

Whether it be the Monster from the Black Lagoon or the Yeti.

"You seem happy," the magenta-eyed female pointed out as she sat at the table.

Kagome smiled, "Only because it's good that you guys took a short day today. You're several hours early! It's still light out."

Sango smiled, "After Hojo dropped his axe on Naraku's toe for the sixth time we decided to call it a day."

Kagome laughed. "Good! Although...Naraku could do without ten toes, I'm sure."

Sango gave a wry smile, "He could also do without his ten braincells. They cause too much trouble with all their 'great' plans."

Kagome began to hum as she finished her cooking.

"Kagome?" Sango asked.

"Uh huh?"

"How's that man you've been meeting? You haven't talked about him for awhile. He hasn't done anything to hurt you, right?"

"No! I know it sounds crazy, but I just feel like I can trust him. I still don't even know his name..."

Sango gave the back of the ebony head a worried glance. "It'll be fine. You know we're here to help, right?"

"Yeah, Sango-chan. don't worry about it. First sign of trouble and I'm out of there," Kagome even snapped her fingers in demonstration of how quickly she'd leave.

The taijiya nodded to herself. "That's good Kagome-chan. We wouldn't want anything to happen to our favorite princess turned maid."

Outside on the windowsill, Myouga gasped.

'Princess turned maid' he echoed in his mind.

"This is perfect! Lord Inuyasha can fix all his problems by marrying the young maiden, this 'Kagome'. Beautiful name. But first things first, I need to check this out. Shouldn't get the master's hopes up only to squash them...just like he'll do to me..." the vassal muttered as he leapt off the sill to find some records of the maiden's claim.

It seemed too perfect to be real.

* * *

Inuyasha smelt her before he saw her. Leaping up, his haori flapping around him, he prepared to greet her like a lost little puppy. 

What he wasn't prepared for was the scent accompanying her sweet aroma. The scent of water and salt-- tears. Something was wrong. Something must be terribly wrong if it had moved the optimistic maiden to crying. A growl resounding in his throatand his hackles raising, Inuyasha mentally cursed whatever the hell it was that had hurt her, and he swore he'd get rid of it. Kagome burst in through the covering of the forest. Her slim, porcelain hands cupped around her tiny face and her ebony hair streamed behind her. Her kimono whipped around her feet as she rushed into the clearing.

Flinging herself at the disturbed hanyou, she clung to his front. Sobbing into his fire rat fabric, she tried to force words out.

'What in all the hells...?'

Inuyasha wrapped one hand around her upper back to support the young woman while drawing soothing circles on the small of her back with the other. "It's okay, what's wrong?"

"Its-I didn't know-I should h-have b-b-been there sooner! It's all my fault..." she blubbered while keeping her face buried into his chest. "All my fault..." she repeated.

"It can't be your fault," Inu started, confused.

Her tear swimming blue eyes looked up at him, "Why's that?" she asked while swiping the tears away with a trembling palm.

Inuyasha shrugged and said tersely, "Because you're perfect."

Kagome couldn't help herself and laughed at that. Punching him lightly in the top of his arm she growled, "Look what you made me do! Don't joke around like that, I shouldn't be laughing!"

Inuyasha smirked, "Who said I was joking?"

Kagome sniffed while rolling her eyes. Skipping the subject she went back to her previous statement, "It's all my fault."

"What is?" he asked, still supporting her.

"Shippou-chan," she said slowly. "He...last night, around midnight, I found him trembling. He's really sick, and I don't know how to help him. If I'd been back sooner, maybe I would have noticed he was hurt."

"Not your fault," he shrugged it off.

"It is so!" Kagome snapped, and Inuyasha winced at her motherly tone. "I should be taking care of them, not gallivanting around with some silver haired stranger!"

"But I'm not a stranger," Inu said testily.

Kag gave him a once over, "No, but you're more of one than they are. For starters, I don't even know you're name."

Inu gave her a look and leaned down to whisper in her ear, "The simple way to fix that would be to give me yours."

Kagome shivered at his tone, "Maybe later," she hastily pushed away. "I just wanted to tell you that I can't come again today or tomorrow. Because I'll be home taking care of him."

"Get one of those others that you talk about to watch him," Inu huffed. "I'm more important." Kagome worried him by not saying anything. "Right...? They're just a bunch of your friends..."

"And that differs from you how?" Kagome asked a little coldly.

Inuyasha winced, before scowling. "What do you mean?"

"I don't even know your name...and I never really thought about it before," Not a complete lie...

"And what about that kiss, have you forgotten that?"

Kagome surprised him, and herself, by snorting and breaking her cold attitude. "That'd be kind of hard. I'd have serious brain damage if I forgot my first kiss," she immediately slapped a hand over her lips and widened her azure orbs. Prying a few fingers away for a second, she whispered, "I didn't just say that out loud, did I?"

"Well actually, you did," Inu rubbed the back of his neck, the lightest of blushes tingeing his cheeks. Oh great! Now he felt bad about stealing her first kiss, but good at the same time that it was him who did it.

Kagome blushed. He wasn't supposed to know that! She was seventeen, dammit! She should have had a kiss by then. "Oops...well, I better go. Shippou?"

"Yeah, go help the brat," he huffed as he collapsed on the ground, one leg under him and the second bent upwards. Crossing his arms and starring off to the side, he watched her through the corner of his eye.

She looked at him a little uncertainly before sighing and trotting off. As she reached the corner of the clearing she gave him one last glance.

Shifting a little, Inu finally gave in, "Wait!"

Mentally smiling that he wasn't going to let her just walk off, she turned back to him. "What?"

"My good-bye kiss?"

The smile being on her face this time, she ran back and kissed him on the cheek. Maybe a little more lingering than she meant to. "Bye, see you in two days?"

"Yeah," he smirked, happy that she was peppy again. She went from sobbing to cold to shy to happy faster than most mood swings would allow.

But somehow he didn't mind.

* * *

"Shippou, sorry I had to leave you alone. But I'm back now. I found some herbs on my way home, they should help." Kagome called as she entered the large cottage and went up the stairs to the small fox. 

"Hey Kagome," he gave an adorable meek smile.

"Feeling any better?" she asked, plopping down to rub his tiny back soothingly.

He gave her a pitiful little look. "Somewhat."

Kag laughed. "Let me guess, not good enough to work tomorrow?"

Shippou gave a lop sided grin with his tiny fangs poking over his bottom lip. "Exactly."

Kagome tapped her chin thoughtfully. "I'll talk to them. Don't worry. There's only seven days of work after today, I don't think they'll miss you. Plus, Midoriko sounds like a fair woman, she shouldn't care if a sick child got a day off."

"Thanks Kagome. What are we going to do tomorrow? I'll be feeling good enough to get out of bed, don't you think?"

"Yeah, probably. We'll have to see."

"Thanks again. I'm going to," here he let out a Kaede sized yawn, "take a nap," he finished before laying his small red head down on his pillow.

"Okay, you do that." Kagome gave him a small kiss on his temple and tucked him in. "Sleep well, 'kay Shippou-chan?"

"All right..." he muttered as the darkness claimed him.

Kagome climbed off the bed to look behind her one more time once at the doorway. She smiled at the slumbering little boy. He was a good kid. Her heart broke at the thought of him being orphaned so young, but that just made her care for him all the more. She'd really grown to love the little boy in such a short time. "Good night Shippou," she whispered before shutting the door. "Sleep well and I'll have a treat for you tomorrow."

* * *

It surprised him, to say the least. 

She was coming, even though she said she wouldn't.

Smirking at the fleeting thought that she just couldn't stay away from him, he tipped his head slightly to gain better access to her fresh scent. The Maiden always smelled good to him.

Of course, then he happened to be surprised for a second time.

Her scent wasn't alone. A smell of musty dirt and the greenery of vegetation, like grass and leaves, was laced in with her own. So was the strong youki of a demon.

Okay...

...So it wasn't strong. But it was still that of a demon.

His hackles raising, Inuyasha rose to his feet in urgency to meet this new threat. If you could call that pathetic excuse for power a threat.

Kagome stepped lightly into the clearing looking a little more clean cut than the day before. Her eyes were no longer red and her face was dry of tears. Instead of her thin brown kimono, she wore the slightly thicker blue one. Her hair was clean, like always, and pulled back softly to be out of her way.

And in her arms, held protectively like any mother or sister would hold, was a fox cub.

A talking, chatting, giggling fox cup wearing clothes.

Which would make him, in Inuyasha's personal logic, a fox _demon_.

"So I can't call you by your name?" the little boy asked as he looked eagerly up at the petite woman.

Kagome earnestly shook her head and flashed a smile. "Nope. I'm keeping it a secret from him."

"Okay," the young boy looked thoughtful for a moment. "So what do I call you?"

Inuyasha strained his ears...which was unnecessary considering he could easily overhear every word being said.

"Um," Kagome wasn't sure.

Golden eyes watched the scene closely as the cub fidgeted. "Could I call you...?"

"What?" her blue eyes flashed as she looked at him curiously.

"Mama?"

Kagome surprised them both by laughing. The sound was like a clear bell that could cut through any confusion or hurt the second it rang. "Of course Shippou-chan! I'd love it, and I'd be honored to be called you're mother."

"Shippou?" Inuyasha muttered. Walking over to the chattering couple he tapped the kid soundly on the head before Kagome could stop him. "So this is the brat?" As he finished the question he bonked the boy on the head, hard, one more time for good measure. 'Wonder what it would feel like to poke him with a stick...?'

Kagome slapped his hand away. "Be nice! And he is not a brat, he's a sweetheart," she defended the kit nestled in her arms. As soon as her line of sight was solely on the hanyou, Shippou stuck his tongue out at the half demon. He then giggled when the silvery-white haired man went to smack him again but his 'mom' stopped the clawed hand. "Do I need to separate you two?" she asked seriously.

Inuyasha snorted before growling at the fox, "He started it!"

"Did not!" Narrowing his green eyes, the fox said quietly, "I can smell the human in you."

It didn't sound like a complement.

Inuyasha flashed his glance up at the young woman. He'd always wondered what she thought about his half-and-half heritage.

Kagome didn't seem to mind as she brushed the comment off. "Without that," she teased the hanyou referring to the human blood, "he wouldn't have these ears!" she tugged on one of the furry triangles to prove her point.

Inuyasha gave her a side-glance, "Is that the only reason you like me, for the ears?"

Kagome giggled, "No! I like you for your sparkling personality!"

Inuyasha felt out of the loop when Kagome and the cub began to snort in laughter and walk away.

* * *

"Watcha doin'?" Shippou asked curiously of the hanyou. 

"Picking flowers."

"Why?"

"So I can braid them."

"Why?"

"Because the young woman you came with asked me to."

"Why?"

"Because she wants a necklace of tulips."

"Why?"

"Because she likes tulips."

"Why?"

"Because they're not ugly."

"Why?"

"Because they have nice colors."

"Why?"

"Why?"

"WHY?!"

_**SMACK**_

"Ow! Don't hit me!" Shippou cried out as he nursed his throbbing head.

"Why?" Inuyasha asked innocently as he went on trying to tie the flowers together without slicing them with claws.

* * *

NEXT CHAPTER: Humor Scenes 


	9. Humor Scenes

::Bobs head along to Truly, Madly, Deeply by Savage Garden:: One of the best songs ever! Along with a few other hundred that I seem to love...To be honest, this entire chapter is _almost_ utterly pointless and only created for your enjoyment and a good laugh. So enjoy! 

Disclaimer: Je n'ai pas de Inuyasha ou Snow White. (I seem to like my French Disclaimer)

* * *

Black as Night, White as Snow

_Chapter Nine: Humor Scenes  
_

* * *

"Are you evil?" Shippou asked as he helped with the tulip necklace.

"The last time I checked, I wasn't."

"Well, Naraku says you're evil. Only a certain amount of time before you show your true colors." The red head went on.

Inuyasha gave him a cold glare. "Look, runt, I am _not_ evil."

"Sure." Shippou complied, without much conviction. "You want to know her name?"

Golden eyes snapped onto the little boy. "..."

"I know you do. She has a beautiful name; did you know that? It's nice to say. You have a weird name. Dog-forest-spirit?" the young male shrugged, "Of course her name isn't all that much better if you think about it."

"Oh?" Inu drew his eyebrows together as he studied the kitsune sitting in the grass beside him. His mousy auburn hair was tousled in the wind, and his tiny fox feet were curled under him. Maybe Inuyasha could get some 'help' from this kid. "How is her name odd?"

The green-eyed kit titled his head to the side and thought carefully, not aware that he was being used. "Her name isn't a name...it's a song game children play and sing."

Okay, so that made no sense.

"Is her name Hokey Pokey?" Inuyasha guessed.

"No."

"Um, is it...Red Rover?"

"No."

"Oh, er, uh...?"

Shippou looked at him oddly, "If that's all you can come up with, I don't think you had a very good childhood."

He was graced with a scowl.

"I had a perfectlyfine childhood!" the half demondefended himself.

"Sure. And I'm Mary Poppins..."

"Really?" Inu looked hopeful. "Can you do that umbrella trick?"

"No, but I can spell Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!"

"No shit! Really?"

Shippou nodded eagerly. "Yep! S-u-p-e-r-c-a-l..."

_Several minutes later..._

"-D-o-c-i-o-u-s!"

Inuyasha looked stunned. "Wow...Even I can't do that!"

Shippou muffled a laugh, "Not all that surprising," he muttered to himself.

Of course Inuyasha heard. "For your information, I can use my sword!" He proudly held Tetsusaiga (/Tessaiga) out to the mini-youkai.

Shippou looked at the chipped and rusted metal, "Have you ever killed anyone with that?"

"Of course I have," Inuyasha huffed, offended.

Shippou grinned triumphantly, "So you _are_ evil! I knew it!"

A groan resounded. "Are we back to that now?"

* * *

Kagome had disappeared a while before and the two boys were left in the clearing to amuse themselves.

Anecklace, anklet, bracelet, choker, and a circlet that could be used for a crown had been created out of tulips; the two demon descendants had run out of things to craft.

So they resorted to an ancient form of time spending that has been around since the Stone Age.

The good old game of 'What if?'

Or...

...At least Shippou started the game.

"What if the sky was green?"

"Then it wouldn't be blue," Inuyasha grunted as he lounged on the grass with his arms supporting his head from behind.

"What if I wasn't born a fox demon?"

"Then you'd be human...or some other kind of weak and defenseless demon."

"What if spiders ruled the world?"

"Then we'd have to live with it because we were too pathetic to protect our own domain...even from those weak arachnids." Inuyasha sneered.

"What if you stopped pointing out the obvious?" Shippou carried on while laying on Inu's left.

Inuyasha finally decided to join into the game. "What if you could actually shut up?"

"What if I couldn't?"

"What if I made you?" Inu gave a small growl and raised his hackles a bit when he looked over to face the kit.

"What if I was smarter and you couldn't?"

"What if you used your brain and pulled you head out of your-?" he cut himself off as he had a very suspicious feeling that the woman would know if he said what he had been planning. "-The clouds?" he finished lamely.

"What if a larger and more dangerous youkai came and ate you?"

"What if I fed you to a more dangerous youkai?" Inu retorted in a growl.

"What if I screamed andMama saved me?" Shippou suggested adoringly.

"What if she didn't?"

"What if you knew that I can defend myself?" Shippou chirped.

"What if you were lying just to impress me?" Inuyasha asked dryly, believing the young boy was all bark, and little bite.

"What if I wasn't?"

"What if I said I'd be surprised...and a bit proud?"

"What if I told you that no one has been proud of me since my father was killed?" Shippou asked suddenly, but Inuyasha was glad to see tears were no where near forming.

"What if I told you that I _was_ proud?" He reasoned, not directly relating it to the not crying.

"What if I didn't believe you?" Shippou questioned dubiously as he eyed the hanyou without trust.

"Your loss!" The silver haired man shrugged as he rose up onto his legs to sit cross-legged.

"Aw! You ruined it!" Shippou complained.

Inuyasha stared off into space. "When is she coming back?"

The boy shrugged. "I don't know," he looked off worriedly into the woods. "She said that she felt horrible about not being prepared when I got sick. She wanted to make sure she was stocked up with her herbs...apparently she knows healing."

Inuyasha snorted. He rolled his eyes and scoffed. "Liar. I bet she just says that to make herself sound more important," he gave the younger male a mischievous smirk.

Shippou surprised him. "Uh-uh. She's gone through a lot. She wouldn't need to tell anyone she's a healer to gain respect. After sitting through her mother's death, her father's betrayal, and her sister's murderous antics, everyone should respect her."

Inuyasha was annoyed to feel his heart leap into his throat. Murderous? Better not be, then he'd rip said sister's heart out and force-feed it to her.

Alright...

...Maybe that was going a little far. But still!

Inuyasha was used to killer siblings. Fluffy was living, walking, talking proof of that. But at least the half-demon could protect himself. As far as he knew, the young maiden was only handy with a bow and arrow or a washcloth.

He smirked in anticipation.

He'd have to teach her how to defend herself. Now that sounded fun.

Of course, when his plans fell into place, she'd have him to protect her.

"Hello?" an annoyed voice called as a small clawed paw waved itself in front of spaced off yellow eyes.

A larger clawed hand snatched at the paw to stop its mesmerizing trip. Inu growled. "Could I have a bit of time to myself to think?"

Shippou looked shocked. "You _think_? Wow...you do learn new things everyday."

"Ha ha." The dog demon muttered. "Yeah..._I'm_ the rude one here. Is everyone blind that it's really the youth of Japan that is conspiring against me to make me sound like a bad guy?"

The fox gave a deadpan look. "Did that even make sense?"

Inu shrugged. "I don't know. I lost myself after the word 'blind'."

"You're hopeless." The boy shook his head slowly and sadly.

Inuyasha gave him a toothy grin. "That's what you think!"

"Of course that's what I think! If I wasn't, than why would I say it?" Shippou snapped frustratingly. This conversation had long since gone insane.

How could Kagome talk to this pea-brain? Shippou could almost hear his brain cells dying one by one.

Inuyasha flicked the kit's head.

Shippou looked at him through narrowed green eyes. "What was that for?" he sulked.

Inu shrugged. "I wanted to see if I could hear an echo," his furry white ear gave a small twitch, "and I think I just did."

"You're. An. Idiot."

* * *

"Whacha doin?" Inuyasha asked as he followed Shippou to the nearby stream where Kagome got the water for the dwarves' cottage.

"Picking up rocks."

Inu smirked. "Why?"

Shippou gave a small growl, but carried on with grabbing pebbles from the water. "Because it's fun."

"Why?"

"Because I'm bored."

"Why?"

"Because you're a moron."

Inuyasha scowled but kept on. "Why?"

"Birth defect."

"Why?"

"Because you have the brain of a peacock."

"Why?"

"Because that means you're a birdbrain."

"Why?"

"Because a peacock is a bird."

"Why?"

"Because that's what smart people say."

"Why?"

"Because they're morons."

"Why?"

"Birth defect."

Inuyasha rubbed between his eyes. Didn't they go through this? "Why?"

"Because they have the brain of-."

"Whoa! Hold it, not starting that again."

Shippou smirked smugly back at him, "Then I won."

"Won? Whatthe hellare you talking about?"

"You gave up. I won," Shippou shrugged, going back to collecting rocks.

"No way! You brat! I refuse to lose," the hanyou huffed and narrowed his golden eyes.

"Whatever," Shippou shrugged off the challenge.

"What is it with the 'why' game anyway?" Inuyasha asked suddenly, his attention span of a gnat flitting over to a new subject.

"It's fun. And annoying. You know what else is?" the boy asked sweetly, turning back to the white haired hanyou. At Inuyasha's nod, the boy took a deep breath and began to sing. "--_I know a song that gets on everybody's nerves, everybody's nerves, everybody's nerves. I know a song that gets on everybody's nerves and this is how it goes: I know a song that gets on everybody's nerves. Everybody's nerves, everybody's nerves_-! --"

He stopped grudgingly when a fist collided with the back of his head.

"Will you stop that howl? Gods! I think my ears are forever marred by that wailing!" Inu whined while swiping at his furry triangles.

Shippou grinned. "Then mission accomplished."

"Do you hate me or something?" Inu growled, leaning down to face the kit nose to nose.

"Yes."

"Why?" Gods this was getting annoying...

"Because you're a moron."

"Why?"

"Birth defect," the kit smiled.

Inuyasha clutched at his head and began to leap off screaming, "No! My sanity! NOO!"

"What's his problem?" Kagome asked as she reappeared behind her young friend in time to watch the red and silver blur dash off.

"I don't know, he's weird," Shippou muttered. "Can we go home now?"

"Sure," Kagome grinned at him. She tucked the 'kerchief of herbs tighter into her elbow so she could lean down and pick up the fox cub. "You all right there?"

"Yep!" the fox chirped.

"Good. If I can swing it the right way, I might get you to come tomorrow..."

"Really?"

"Well..." she grinned evilly. "I found thisgreat leaf that will make you feel hot to the touch without an actual fever. I think Midoriko-sama won't mind another day off for the sweetest of the dwarves."

Shippou joined her giggles. "Perfect! How do you know about that plant?"

"Oh...I had a lot of practice using plants with side effects on my sister..."

* * *

"No."

"But Sango-!"

"No." The brunette shook her head defiantly and gave Miroku the most evil look she could muster.

"Lady Sango-!" Miroku tried again, but the flames behind Sango caused him to gulp and take a step back.

"I don't care what excuse you give me, but the next time I walk in on you wearing Kagome's kimono, I'm going to judge your mental state!" She roared and managed to stomp off just before she burst out in giggles.

Miroku was left behind looking sullen while the brown kimono seemed to whisper:

"Just don't get caught next time."

Okay...

...Now Miroku was questioning his mental state as well.

* * *

"Got any threes?"

"Go fish." Kagura demanded. "Kings?"

"No, go fish. But now that you mentioned my next scam-."

"I did no such thing," Kagura, snorted, outraged. She took the liberty to slip a few extra cards from Naraku's hand during his rant though...

"-I was thinking if we do it just right, we could pass as a king and queen that have amnesia! It's genius, all we would have to do is-!"

"Naraku?"

"What, Kagura?" he growled, angry for being interrupted.

"You couldn't pass for a king even if you had the castle and everything," she drawled, looking at him in all seriousness.

"Why is that?" he asked coldly.

Kagura looked stunned and said with such simplicity it was elegant, "You don't have a crown, you idiot!"

Oh dear...

"That would be a problem..." Naraku sulked as he began to fine-tune his plan.

* * *

"How'd you lose your eye?"

"Well, since ye asked, child, I lost it during...an activity." Kaede told the girl cautiously.

"What kind?"

"Well...have ye heard of Inuyasha?"

"Yes..."

"Well, we were getting carried away-."

"Oh dear Buddha! Is this safe for a young girl to listen to?"

Kaede looked baffled. "What? Oh never mind," she trudged on, "We got distracted during a game of poker..."

She seemed to miss the relieved sigh from Kanna as she listened to the story from her position in the mirror in front of the old miko. The young mirror demoness gave a small chuckle...

For a minute there, she thought Kaede had been talking about...well, yeah.

I mean who wouldn't deem it strange if you thought you were being told a story of tag? That game is pretty scary...

* * *

"Dur."

"Mew."

"Dur."

"Mew."

"Du-."

"That's it!" Sango snapped. "It's rude to have a conversation at the dinner table, Hojo, Kirara!"

"Mew."

"Dur."

"That's okay. I accept your apologies," Sango went back to her rice balls.

* * *

"Sesshoumaru!" Inuyasha burst into his brother's thrown room. Said brother glared down his nose at him.

"What do _you_ want, Inuyasha?"

"Nothing...Just to see someone worse off than me to prove I'm not insane..."

* * *

"Kanna!"

"Yes Kikyou?" the youkai whispered as she appeared from the mist of her mirror in the Queen's chamber.

"Where have you been?"

"In the Land of Faerie, enjoying a story..." the girl said without missing a beat.

"Really?" Kikyou hard, steel eyes softened a little. "Are the houses really teacups and the flowers made out of sugar?" Her dream-like state intensified.

Kanna humored her, "Yes, my queen."

"I think..." Kikyou started softly, giving her head a shake to return to her normally stern self. "I need a drink of that exquisite well water. It has a sweet tang to it, but it seems to have lost it's potency over the last few weeks..."

"I'm sorry to hear that, Queen." Kanna's breathy voice sympathized.

"That's alright Kanna. I've been having Kouga guard the well to keep trespassers from it. I'll have him gather me a glass. I hope he still isn't sore after that punishment of licking the third floor clean..."

-

Kouga grinned evilly and his ice blue eyes glinted mischievously as he poured the Queen a glass of water from the well he'd accidentally dropped the curry in...

* * *

NEXT CHAPTER: Truth Time 


	10. Truth Time

Hello all! Finally, a chapter with substance! And plot...and all that 'good' stuff! Only five more chapters after this. Told you this would be a short story.

Thanks completely for all reviews! They're food for my writer's soul...

Disclaimer: Je n'ai pas d'Inuyasha ou Snow White.

* * *

Black as Night, White as Snow

_Chapter Ten: Truth Time_

* * *

"Well?" The small flea demon asked impatiently, all of his arms crossed in a huff as he glared up at anolder youkai.

"Huh?" The man asked stupidly, absently scratching at the spot between his bulging eyes.

"Totosai..." Myouga started off slowly, "I've gone through my request _THIRTEEN TIMES_!" The tiny youkai ground out between clenched teeth. Oh how he wanted to just hop up there and suck all of the blood out of this...this...ignoramus!

"Well..." Totosai looked off into the distance behind the flea.

Myouga leaned forward in earnest to hear if this 'Kagome' was truly the maid, and if she, in turn, was royalty. "Yes...?"

"...I forgot..."

**_PING_**

"Are you okay Myouga?" the old man bent down to pick up the flat-on-his-face flea demon, "It's really stupid of you to jump from such heights!"

"Yeah..._I'm_ stupid..." The flea glowered up at the sword smith, an old friend of Inuyasha's family. "Well, Totosai, I shall state my query again." Myouga sat in the palm of his hand and settled himself down. "I was wondering if you have ever heard of a young maiden...A 'Kagome'?"

"I need more to go on than that," Totosai flopped down and sat cross-legged on the floor of the cave dwelling. "The name 'Kagome' is not popular, but a 'young maiden' is."

"Yes, I see," Myouga's nasal voice floated to Totosai's pointed ears. "Well...she is roughly seventeen or eighteen years of age and lives in the forest of Queen Kikyou's realm."

Totosai's eyes, if possible, grew larger. "Oh, _her_? I know exactly who you're talking about!"

"Really?" Myouga looked up hopefully.

The flea face faulted when the old man looked down at him in confusion. "Really what? What were we talking about, again?"

Myouga would have pulled his hair out- if he'd had any. "Totosai! Focus! Who is the young maiden that goes by the name Kagome! She lives in the forest of Queen Kikyou's land! _YOU OLD FOOL_!"

"Oh, you mean the young orphan princess?"

"YE—WAIT! Did you just say the 'orphan princess'? So she is a princess?" Myouga was just short of hitting his head repeatedly into the cave's rock wall.

"...Yes. Kagome. I met her mother when she was pregnant with the girl. Roughly seven years ago her father, the only person the young Princess had left since her mother died soon after the birth, passed on. Kikyou, that stoic, spoiled brat, ascended to the thrown and basically stripped Kagome of her title. But a princess is a princess, I always say."

"Wait. So you mean that Kagome is an actual, real as corn princess? That means my Lord can marry her! And then I won't get squashed!" The small demon hopped up and down, a tiny speck in the larger demon's hand.

"Oh? Really? Well I'd hurry! You only have six days left, including today!" The elder of the two reminded the almost equally as old youkai.

"How do you know such things, Totosai?" Myouga turned a suspicious gaze upward.

Totosai shrugged and struggled to his lanky limbs. "Oh, you know, I get around. So...what's for dinner?"

* * *

"You came!" Kagome called, the giggle evident in her voice.

Inuyasha opened a golden eyeto anarrow slit and regarded her with silence.

"_You came_." Kagome ground out as she repeated her earlier statement.

"So?"

_**THUNK**_

"OW! What the fuck was that for wench!"

"You broke tradition!" she snarled before flopping down in the dirt, a laughing Shippou clinging to the front of her kimono. "And, if you don't mind, I'd like that bucket back. Once you're done with it on your head of course..."

"You threw it at me! It's your fault it's there in the first place," he retorted, yanking the offending wooden water bucket off of his silver head. He glared heatedly at Shippou. "Why'd you bring _that_ again?"

"Him."

"Huh?" Inuyashaasked intelligently.

"Him. Not 'that'. Shippou is a 'him', not an 'it'!"

"So?"

**_SMACK_**

"Why, onna, do you carry _two_ buckets around with you!" he bellowed, yanking the second one off his head.

"In case when I throw the first one you don't shut up." She looked up at him coldly...before bursting into giggles.

"What now?" he grumbled, lowering himself beside her, eyeing the woman apprehensively.

She peered at him from the corner of an ocean eye. "Your ear- It's all tilted to the side and flopped over!" she laughed and tweaked said ear.

He glowered back at her and blew out of the corner of his mouth, causing his bangs to fly up. "You find the weirdest damn things funny," he scowled.

"I thought it was funny too!" Shippou squeaked his protest.

"Hey kid," Inu looked down at the fox, sitting in the maiden's lap.

"Yeah?" Shippou looked back up curiously.

"There's a cliff over there," Inuyasha pointed a clawed finger northward.

"Yeah, so?"

"Why don't you go walk off it?" Inu smirked when the comment got the girl to laugh. She giggled and slapped his arm in hysterics.

"You're a nut!" she declared, quirking an eyebrow in his direction.

Shippou crossed his arms and sulked. Kagome wasn't supposed to respond like that! She was supposed to defend him! Growling, he crossly thought that the half-breed had muddled her brain. "Hey, can I go do something else? Your flirting is killing off my brain cells," he complained.

Kagome blushed crimson. "We're not flirting! Gods Shippou, can't two fairly grown people enjoy each other's company?"

"Uh...no? Yes? Maybe? I don't know, I'm seven!" he pouted before leaping off her lap. "So...can we do something? Or not?"

"Why are you so cross today? You're acting like him!" Kagome pointed over her shoulder at the hanyou.

Shippou looked horrified. "No! I can't! Oh no!" he groaned.

Kagome giggled. "Don't worry, all you have to do is show some manners and you won't have to worry about sounding like him anymore!"

"I'd hit you, but I was taught not to hit woman..." Inu glowered. "Of course- !"

"Don't you even dare say 'you're not a woman so it's okay'!" Kagome frowned in his direction before pursing her lips. "You are evil..."

"I am NOT evil!"

"Uh huh...sure...Anyway, what are we going to do?" Kagome changed the subject, letting her attention wander.

Shippou gave a toothy grin. "I know!" he announced before flopping backwards in the grass.

Inuyasha blinked. "We're going to take a nap in the dirt?"

Shippou rolled his eyes. "That's what you do! We're not pigs..."

"Pigs don't have sweat glands, that's why they roll in the mud," Kagome said matter-of-factly.

Inuyasha blinked again. "That was random."

"I know..." Kagome said. "Anyway, Shippou what do you think we should do?" Kag smiled kindly down to the little fox.

"Cloud watching!"

"Oh, wow, a cloud...we're done." Inu stated dryly pointing up to a piece of white fluff in the sky.

"That's cirrus...It's normally a sign of bad weather in a few days' time."

"How do you know these things, wench?" The hanyou stared blankly in her direction.

She shrugged, "I don't know. Did you know that the average person has eight dreams in one night?" she asked.

Two demon heads shook slowly back at her. "Can we stop with the facts?" Inuyasha growled bluntly.

"Oh! A bunny!" Kagome pointed back up at the pre-mentioned cloud.

"Finally! Took you two long enough to get to the game!" Shippou glared before turning green eyes back to the sky.

"What game?" Inuyasha asked, completely missing Kagome's bunny sighting while searching for said rabbit in the trees.

Shippou sighed. "You look at the clouds and try to find shapes in them," he explained to the half demon that the fox still thought of as having a horrible childhood.

Inu snorted. "What are you? Stupid? Like we'll really find a triangle in a cloud!"

The two others face faulted.

"No!" Kagome tried to keep her anger down. 'In with the pink, out with the blue' she reminded herself before giggling. That always did the trick. "What Shippou means is, you try to find a cloud that's shaped like something. Do you get it now?"

"No," Inuyasha said while nodding.

Kagome sweatdropped before sighing. She looked up for a brief instant before pointing out a cloud. "See that one?" she waited for him to nod before going on, "It's looks like a parasol. See it?"

Inuyasha stared for a few good seconds before answering. "Yeah, I guess."

"Good. Now you try," she smiled in his direction and ignored the gagging Shippou at her sweetness.

Inuyasha tilted his head up and looked for awhile. "Oh...see that one?"

Kagome followed the line of direction from his clawed finger. "Yeah."

He smiled proudly. "It looks like a bowl of ramen!"

"...Sure, why not?" Kagome commented while nodding and smiling. Her father used to tell her that to survive in the world, all you needed to do was nod and smile. It normally got you through without having to actually know what you were agreeing to.

"I got the hand of this game!" Inu announced flopping down beside the red haired fox cub.

The ex-princess shrugged before joining them on the grassy hill.

Eight more bowls of ramen sightings, a dead body with a sword through it, a dragon roasting someone, and a dead 'Fluffy-sama' (whatever that was) later, Inuyasha dubbed himself the winner.

"We have to get going. Shippou can't come tomorrow," Kag told the dog demon sadly and ignored his cries of 'yay!' "Oh, I'm sorry. But I won't be coming tomorrow, I'm going to head over to the mines."

"The mines?" Inu asked, sitting up, looking forlorn at the thought that she'd be gone.

"Yeah, where my friends work," Kagome explained. "Oh, and in five days I can't come either. My friends and I are going to celebrate something so I'll be busy."

She would have went on further, but at her words the man had seemed to have gone into deep thought. Shrugging it off, she picked up Shippou and placed himon her brown clad hip.

"Bye!" She called cheerfully. "I'll see you back here soon." After Shippou called a few more insults and good-byes, the two went on their ways.

* * *

'Five days?' Inuyasha asked himself sullenly. He'd barely noticed the girl and her little friend's departure.

The words 'five days' had jogged his memory. And it wasn't a good memory.

In five days, no longer counting the day that was close to ending, he'd be forced to marry Queeny.

Not that he had any particular reason to not marry her, he realized, it was just the whole situation. His brother, who'd never treated him fairly, expected him to marry a woman he didn't know, all for his older half-brother's selfish, greedy gain.

Okay, insuring the fact that their kingdom had a powerful ally at their border may not seem greedy, but Inuyasha was sure he'd find the fact in there somewhere.

'Now that I think about it...Queeny didn't look half-bad. But she did seem a year or two too old for me. She also seemed...distant. And, I could never allow myself to marry some psychotic idiot who put a dining fork next to a katana.'

It was personal thing.

Where was he going to find a royal twit to help him get out of the situation? Maybe he could find a princess somewhere that was in a similar situation? As soon as they married to get their relatives off their backs, they could separate.

Damn Myouga!

"It's all that stupid flea's fault," Inu muttered out loud. 'He let me put this off too long! On purpose too, I bet! Evil bloodsucking...'

Hmm...

...Speaking of that bloodsucking retainer, where was he?

* * *

"Lord Inuyasha! Don't do anything stupid while I'm on my way there!" Myouga called out to the dusk.

'Oh why did I have to have such short feet? I can't believe Totosai wouldn't be kind enough to give me a ride on his cow!'

"It's a conspiracy," the old youkai concluded as he continued on the long, daunting journey back to his master to deliver the good news.

* * *

"Kagome-sama, do you really think it is wise to come with?" Miroku asked as he helped the maiden lock the front door the next morning.

Kagome smiled and patted the monk on the head, much to his displeasure.

'I'd rather be patted somewhere else...' he grumbled to himself while eyeing her rear end.

He couldn't help himself.

**_SMACK_**

"Miroku!" Kagome screeched.

"Sorry Lady Kagome...It was calling me! My hand just wandered. Hmm...do you think those are magpies or blue jays?"

"...Sorry Miroku-sama, but you're the only one who can see the birds. You'll have to figure it out on your own," Kagome sulked as she stomped off to join the steaming Sango.

"Well I think they're finches, on second thought!" Miroku announced as he raced to join up with his friends, earning him a knock to the head from Sango. "My dear..." His violet eyes starry, Miroku turned to look deeply at the furious taijiya. "I have traveled the world and I have never met another woman who can hit as hard as you can."

"I think that's a compliment," Kagome whispered as she leaned down to Sango's ear.

"That's what scares me..." Sango eyed the swaying monk before walking off with the full-grown woman, laughing and smiling.

Miroku pouted before hanging back from the others to talk with Naraku...The only other male member with an adult working brain such as his own. And that wasn't saying much.

"What I want to know," Miroku started eyeing the backside of the shorter of the two women walking ahead of them, "Is why does Lady Sango seem only violent around me?"

"Maybe it's the fact that you treat her like an object..." Kagura muttered under her breath from behind the two men. "Why do you say that?" she asked louder, joining the conversation.

"Well, with Kaede-sama or Lady Kagome or you, Lady Sango is such a sweet person," he paused to daydream for a second before coming back. "She's not angered easily or feels the need to render someone unconscious unless I'm in the room too."

Kagura looked at him for a moment before blinking. "You know what? I think you're right. Wow."

"How can he be right," Naraku asked, eyeing the perverted houshi.

Kagura shrugged. "Sango-san is pretty gentle and nice unless the hentai is with her."

Naraku chuckled. "I know why..." his dark aura pulsed. "Sango knows that Miroku is a glutton for punishment, he feels loved when a woman hits him upside the head. So she, since she's so full of manners, grants his wish by hitting him every chance she gets."

"Aw- how sweet!" Kagura cooed before walking ahead, laughing her ass off. Naraku followed shortly after.

Miroku watched her go before looking back at Sango. "She has the smoothest backhand I've ever seen..."

* * *

_Tink_

_Ting_

**Smack**

**Crack**

**Thunk**

"Is it always this loud in the Shikon Mines?" Kagome yelled over the sounds of the dwarves hammering away at the rock walls, fingers in her ears.

"WHAT?" Sango yelled back. She stopped hacking away at the jewels in the wall to face her friend.

**_CRASH_**

"I said- is it always this LOUD?" Kagome called louder.

"What? Where's a clown?" Miroku asked, fearfully looking around while shivering. He hated clowns.

"Not clown. LOUD!" Kag corrected.

"Don't frown, be happy!" Miroku cheerfully commanded.

"I'm not frowning, I said LOUD!" Kagome glared at them all.

"I don't care how much you miss your crown, stop whining!" Kagura complained.

**_SMASH_**

**_CLINK_**

**_TINK_**

"NOT CROWN! I SAID LOUD!" Kagome screeched at the top of her lungs...just as all the noise stopped. "...Oops...?" she blushed while sweatdropping.

"Of course it is, girl, we have to actually do work. If it was me, I'd hire minions to- OW! FUCK! SHIT! DAMN IT HOJO! NOT AGAIN!"

Kagome watched, half smiling, as Naraku chased the sandy-haired human around the mine, raising a pickaxe threateningly.

Sango and Kagura scowled, used to the scene. "Gods be damned...Can you two work together once without doing this? It's getting old..." Kagura drawled, watching them all as if they were inferior to her.

In her mind, they probably were.

"Come on, let's get back to work," Sango said grimly, hoisting her shovel to her kimono clad shoulder. "Midoriko-sama won't appreciate it if we slack off at the end of our working days."

"Can I help?" Kagome asked cheerfully.

"Uh-uh, Kagome-chan, it's our assignment. It'd be wrong to make you do it," Sango smiled gently at her friend.

"Okay, just say if you do need help," Kagome began toshred the hem of her brown kimono.

Sango was about to raise her shovel to begin to dig, but stopped out of curiosity. "Say, Kagome-chan? What are you doing?"

"Hmm?" Kagome started to stuff the fabric into her ears. "I didn't want the noise to bother me anymore."

Sango shrugged before signaling to the rest that they should start working.

* * *

"Kikyou? Why do you look so grim?" Kanna whispered from her position in her mirror. She forgot to mention the fact that the queen _always_looked grim, but today she looked especially cold.

"Kanna! Do not forget your place," Kikyou narrowed her steel gray eyes at the youkai child. "But I shall answer you anyway. It seems that I have finally located a method to dispose of my bothersome sister."

Kanna's face showed slight interest, her normally blank light blue eyes opened a little more from their half-lidded state. "Wouldn't that be cause for celebration?"

Kikyou nodded slowly, "It would, if it weren't for the problem of the plan."

"And that would be...?" the mirror enchantress raised a snow-white eyebrow.

Kikyou's thin, peach lips twisted into a frown. "I was looking through some spell books of my evil great-aunt, and I found a recipe for poisoned food. It has an immediate effect on the taster."

"How is this a problem?"

"I was getting to that," Kikyou snapped, her temper shortened. "It takes four full days to create this poison. If I start immediately-," she broke off, "What time is it?"

"Mid-afternoon," Kanna answered quickly.

Kikyou started where she'd left off, "If I start at this moment or near to it, I won't finish until the night before my wedding. If you add in the time it takes to get to my sweet baby sister," she sneered, "I won't have her dead until the morning of my wedding. If it goes smoothly, which it seems to never do, I'll come home the hour before I marry."

"So don't screw up," Kanna suggested in monotone.

Kikyou scowled, "I didn't plan to," she retorted before whipping around and storming away.

Kanna's eyes became heavy lidded once again. "Kagome...you are a smart girl. When you actually try to be, that is. Don't let this fool," she stared emotionlessly at the door Kikyou had left by, "trick you."

Small whisps of smoke and fog glowed around her tiny body, and then Kanna of the Void was gone.

* * *

"Heigh-ho, heigh-ho, it's home from work we go! Dum, dum, dum, dum, dum, dum, dum, dum. Heigh-ho, heigh-ho, heigh-ho!"

Sango trailed behind the others, softly shaking her head. "Oh dear Gods...I can't believe he got Kagome to join him in that damn song!"

Kagura patted her shoulder in a comforting gesture. "It's okay to fall for idiots, you know? I'm just sorry you had to fall for the king of them..."

Sango shook her head slowly; "Miroku's not the king. He's the jester!"

Kagura snickered.

"Lady Kagome! That was beautiful! Let's have another go at it, shall we?" Miroku smiled merrily.

Kagome grinned, "Yay! Let's!"

Deep breath.

"HEIGH-HO, HEIGH-HO..."

"Is it me, or does that song get worse every time we hear it?" Naraku asked quietly.

"I don't know about ye, but I've despised it from the beginning," Kaede answered dryly.

"Yeah...you can say that again..." the evil hanyou muttered, trailing sullenly after the happy pair of singers.

* * *

"Lord Sesshoumaru-sama?"

"Yes, Rin?"

"Why is Uncle Inu not here?" the small girl asked as she munched on her octopus and rice ball dinner.

Sesshoumaru sighed and looked at the little girl out of the corner of his sharp, golden eye. "If we're lucky, Uncle Inu won't ever be here again." He drawled coldly.

Rin pouted, "But I like Uncle Inu, Sesshoumaru-sama!"

"Yes Rin, I understand that. You shouldn't grow attached, he's a complete slob," he stated coldly.

Rin grinned, proudly showing off a missing tooth. "That's why I like him!" she announced.

"Hn," Sesshoumaru tsked. "Uncle Inu is not here because I've set about ruining his life," he answered her original question.

"Oh...are you having fun?"

"Oh, yes. Yes I am..."

* * *

Hmm...names that are songs that children play and sing...

Duck, duck, goose?

No.

The Bunny Hop?

No.

Conga?

'Uh, that's not a game,' Inuyasha scolded his mind.

'But 'poker' is!' his consciousness argued back.

"Yeah, but not a song! Gods, and I thought you were supposed to be smart!" Inuyasha grumbled out loud.

Back to the mind game.

Ring Around the Rosy?

Rosy?

Rose?

Those could work, but she didn't really sound like a Rose.

"Ring around the rosy, Pockets full of posy, Ashes, Ashes, We all fall down," Inuyasha sang as he continued to think of names.

* * *

'Hmm...what is his name?' Kagome thought over dinner.

"Shippou?" she asked aloud.

"Huh?" Said boy looked up from stuffing his face with shushi. Don't ask how she'd gotten and made it...It's a rather disgusting process.

"Did that man tell you his name?" Kagome looked at the small boy. Although both would readily deny it, she had a feeling they actually liked each other. The two demonsbonded.

"...Yes," he said slowly, remembering the translation he'd made of it a few days before: dog forest spirit.

Kagome perked up, "Will you tell me it?"

Shippou frowned at her. "Kagome! He told me not to!"

"Alright, Shippou-chan," she went back to her dinner. She'd just have to figure out another way to get his name out of Shippou.

The next meeting would need to be truth time between the two...hopefully, that is...

* * *

NEXT CHAPTER: Surprise Visit


	11. Surprise Visit

Not only do I have writer's block and am buried under procrastinated homework, I'm typing this chapter after burning my hand...

Oh how I hate the 'hunt and peck' method of typing.

Bad luck sucks.

Thanks for the reviews!

Disclaimer: Nope, not mine.

* * *

Black as Night, White as Snow

_Chapter Eleven: Surprise Visit_

* * *

"Lady Kagome, I highly suggest that you-"

"Don't open the door," six voices, minus one moronic human, chorused back at Miroku.

"Yes, yes," Kagome hustled them out the door. "I got it. What are you, a parrot?" she glared at the tiny man. "Out."

"Yes ma'am," Miroku saluted her before marching off, a scowl twisting his usually calm face. "What is she, a drill Sargent?" he muttered, ignoring Sango as shefollowed after him, smothering her giggles.

"No, of course he isn't a parrot, Kagome. He's a hentai houshi!" Kagura sang out as she glided behind the others.

"Hentai houshi, hentai houshi, hentai houshi," Sango, Kagura, and Naraku teased the grinning monk.

"And proud of it!" Miroku announced and skipped off while the other three rolled their eyes at his back.

Thus the Seven Dwarves set out with only four days of work left before the curse was lifted and they returned to normal.

Or...

...At least as normal as those seven could get.

* * *

"Lady Sango?"

"Yes, Sir-Monk?" the brunette straightened up and swiped at the sweat covering her brow before turning to Miroku.

Miroku looked at her thoughtfully. "Would you mind coming out to get a little fresh air with me."

Sango eyed him suspiciously and cautiously grabbed her steel pickaxe- just in case. "Sure, it'd be nice to stretch some."

Miroku grinned charmingly and started his way toward the mouth of the cave, a wary Sango not too far behind.

Kagura looked after them and her scarlet eyes narrowed. "Don't take too long! You should be pulling your weight and not spending all your time chatting!" she yelled after them. They ignored her. Scowling, the wind demoness began to hack at the rock wall mercilessly. It never seemed to amaze her that they'd never run out of jewels to mine.

Come to think of it...

"Naraku," she drawled coldly, turning to her cousin. "Where do all these jewels go after we mine them?"

"Huh?" The sly youkai raised his girlish eyebrows before shrugging carelessly. "All I know is that after we put the crates at the shrine in the back, the jewels are gone before I have time to sneak back there to steal them."

Kagura mentally groaned. "And why," she asked dryly, "Don't you just steal the things while we're mining them?"

Naraku stopped and thought carefully about it. Confidently opening his mouth, he asked his elegant family member:

"Now where's the fun in that?"

* * *

Sango took in a deep breath of the fresh mountain air.

How there was a single -apparently invisible- mountain peak in the middle of a giant forest, she'd never know. Why complain with a view like this? It would take her breath away- if she weren't already holding it in anticipation of a certain man doing a certain activity.

It worried her when it didn't come.

Casually leaning on the end of her tool, the taijiya looked up calmly from her cupped hands. Miroku's violet-black head of hair was just in her line of vision. From where she was looking, the mountain fell away from view and only the blue sky and white clouds framed the man's upper half of his body.

From where she was looking, it was almost as if the monk was just as he had been the day she'd met him.

He certainly maintained the same perverted mind.

As she started to relax, with the wind blowing her tied up brown hair, her eyes started to drift shut. But, as always, Miroku seemed to have the talent of ruining a precious moment.

"Sango..."

Why would he drop the 'lady' in front of it? Wow...this could be serious.

"Do you remember..." he started off slowly keeping his head facing forward at the tree-covered valley at the foot of the unnoticeable mountain. "What I asked you all those years ago?"

Sango shifted a little, but tried to maintain her dignified pose. "...Yeah..." The pose seemed to be ruined by the dark pink that stained her cheeks.

Miroku sighed, "Really? Well...Have you thought any more about it? I don't mean to press, don't answer if you do not feel the need to. Simply curious."

Even more red dusted the woman's nose. "Er- Miroku...um...n-no, not really. You haven't mentioned it for awhile and...I t-thought you..."

"Forgot?" he supplied, turning to face his companion. He had an odd look in his eyes, an unrecognizable emotion. "Didn't mean it?"

Sango lowered her magenta orbs and nodded dumbly. She flinched when he chuckled and looked up hell-bent on telling him off for it. But that look was still there.

"Ah, my lovely Lady Sango, I could never not mean that. I truly meant it with all my heart." Miroku smiled and turned back to the mid-morning scene.

Sango felt a sudden anger -and maybe a little fear- flood her senses. "No you didn't," she snapped suddenly, fueled by this 'anger' that she felt. "You're just like all those others!"

Miroku lowered his head as he felt her eyes bore into the back of his head. "No..._I meant it_."

Sango glowered, her calm mood dissipating. She generally wasn't a pessimistic or foul mood person, but Miroku had the 'talent' to drag up all those emotions she hid so carefully.

"No one would mean that to me. Why would they? I'm certainly not very feminine-" she ignored Miroku's attempt at aninterruption, "And there are so many much better looking than I am."

The man whipped around and narrowed his violet eyes at her, dead serious. "Sango, you will never say those things again. They are far from the truth and you know it! I meant what I said all those years ago when the curse was laid, and I still mean them. In three more days I will ask you again, and I would appreciate a –**_thought out_**- answer." He turned on his rice sandled feet and walked stiffly away. "We should be heading back before Kagura has a heart attack."

* * *

_-Tap- -Tap- -Tap-_

"Hang on!" Kagome yelled sweetly as she hurriedly dried off her soapsud hands. She yanked off the coarse apron and tottered to the front door.

Screw Miroku.

Kagome smiled as she opened the heavy wooden door to find-

-Nothing.

"Hello?" she asked sticking her head out slightly and looking around. Maybe she _hadn't_ heard someone knock? Maybe she was getting toward the insane end? Hmm...she should stop hanging out with Naraku; he seemed to be rubbing off on her.

"Down here," a nasally, high-pitched voice commanded.

Kagome turned her blue eyes downward and they alighted on a balding, clean- shaven, brown haired man. His humble peasant clothes seemed to carry an odor with them. And not a very good odor at that.

He was also no taller than her waist.

Still, Kagome smiled down at the newest arrival- she had a good feeling this man wasn't Kikyou. "Hi, can I help you?" she chirped.

"Ah, yes you can." The man took a step forward and fumbled with a hat in his hands. "I'm looking for my comrades. Have you seen them? The seven dwarves?"

"Do you know them?" Kagome asked curiously.

"Of course," the man gave a crooked grin, "I'm the eighth dwarf- Frank."

_**SLAM**_

Kagome stood panting against the now shut wooden door. Maybe Miroku was right? There did seem to be weirdoes wandering the hills.

I mean, who's ever heard of the _Eight_ Dwarves?

* * *

-_Huff- -Huff-  
_  
"Damn...how long does it take to travel the equivalent to three miles?" the poor flea panted.

Oh this was going to be a long journey.

* * *

He couldn't help it. Really, he couldn't.

Was it his fault that his eyes brightened at the sight of her?

A gorgeous, kind, young, nice woman walks into a clearing, surrounded by fluffy animals with the most beautiful smile on her face. Her long, silky, midnight tinted black hair in loose waves around her shoulders and her wild yet tame bangs fluttering across her forehead. Not to mention the fact that said young maiden's insides was as pretty as her outside.

Now who wouldn't smile at the sight of that?

'Seriously,' Inuyasha mused. 'Even if some poor old badger was blind, he'd still be able to _feel_ her presence!'

The hanyou could swear the colors were brighter, the sounds sweeter, and his heart lighter at the sight of the girl.

"Hey!" She waved over to him, then giggled when a small goldfinch hoped onto the moving hand.

"Hi," he croaked, struggling to keep his scowl in place. He'd be so embarrassed if it turned into a smile.

Inuyasha, inu hanyou, son of the great taiyoukai Inutaisho could _not_ smile!

For it tis a very evil facial expression!

'Yeah...now I'm rambling,' the silver haired man rolled his eyes as he pushed up from the firm ground.

Kagome grinned happily as she reached him. "I love spring!" she announced.

Inu looked at her carefully. "That's...random..."

She smirked and rolled her blue-gray eyes at him. "It's just that...my birthday is in the spring. I guess it's biased then, isn't it? Winter and summer and autumn are pretty too...maybe if I was born in one of them, I would like it better."

Inuyasha nodded. It seemed logical to him. "You have this weird habit of saying the most off topic things, you know that, Wen-?"

"What was that?" she interrupted coolly.

"Girl," he finished lamely.

"Oh really?" she let his slip slide and waltzed gracefully to a tree trunk before all but collapsing on it.

"Wait...birthday?" Inuyasha asked. Oh yeah, he definitely had an issue of over using that word.

"Huh? Yeah..." Kagome looked away and blushed.

Inuyasha noticed. "What's with the pink?" he growled as he thumped down next to her on the ground.

Kagome shrugged. "I don't...like my birthday."

"Huh?" Inu looked up at her through his thick bangs.

Kagome shifted a little and Inuyasha could start to smell the nervousness and sadness rolling off of her.

"My mom...she...uh...died on my birthday. My first birthday."

"Oh." Inuyasha scowled. Why did he have to have the oh-so-enviable talent of saying the wrong thing at the wrong time?

They stayed silent for awhile before one of them had to break the awkward moment.

"My...My mom died when I was young too." Inuyasha felt that if he shared something that she'd feel better.

"Really?" Kagome looked down at him in surprise. She'd never really thought about the guy having parents...or a home...or a past...she just lived in the moment with him.

Inu shrugged. "Doesn't matter. I don't remember her. My dad died before that and my brother is in charge of-," he caught himself before he said the word 'kingdom'. That could imply he was a prince, or as it was, a lord. He was still avoiding that.

"Of?"

"My family," Inu slipped in easily.

"So, would that be just you, or more?" Kagome wasn't prying, really she wasn't. She wasn't being nosy either! She was just one of those naturally curious types.

"Yes...I mean no...I mean there is one other. I have a little...er...sister."

"Really?" Blue became sparkly and the color shimmered. "Aww...A little girl! Oh, I love little kids."

"I noticed that about you and that brat..." he huffed.

Kagome was so caught up in the moment that she missed the insult to the fox cub under her care.

"So...are you all happy like the fairy tale family?" Kagome asked, one for happy endings.

Inuyasha snorted. "Fuck no," he ignored her scowl, "We're so dysfunctional, it's funny."

"What do you mean?" she asked slowly.

"Well...let's see. My brother is a full dog demon, I'm half, and Rin is all human."

Kagome blinked at him.

"Huh?" she asked intelligently.

Inu snorted at her clueless look. "Fluffy is my half brother, we have the same father."

"Fluffy?"

Inu got the feeling that she'd know that 'Sesshoumaru' was the king/lord of one of the four great lands in Japan, so he was trying to keep his name out of the conversation. "I call him that because it bugs the hell out of him..." he waved it off flippantly.

"Oh...so how does your sister -Rin, wasn't it?- fit into all this?"

"Huh? Well she's adopted. I think."

"You think?" Kagome asked, wondering at this guy's brain cell count.

"Well...I really don't understand how she can be my sister if she came after my parents died. Can you adopt someone as your sister and not as your daughter?" he asked.

Kagome shrugged, "I don't know."

"Anyway. We consider her my sister even though, I guess, she's technically Fluffy's daughter. Or maybe she's mine? I don't know. Like I said, we're dysfunctional." Inuyasha yawned and his slender fangs glinted in the sun.

Kagome ignored the razor sharp attachments. "Right."

Inu settled against the tree stump that Kag was sitting on top of. He leaned into his hands and closed his eyes. "According to Shippou, you're family sounds dysfunctional too."

"What?" Kagome snapped upright. "What all did he say?" She demanded as she looked down at the guy.

Inuyasha looked up at her strangely. She was acting pretty protective. "Just that you're parents are gone and you're sister is...blood happy or something."

"Uh," Kagome's mind raced. Kag hated to talk about Kikyou, it was a touchy subject. She needed to turn the subject to something safer. Something completely distracting: "So...How 'bout them cowboys?"

Inuyasha blinked at her. "What the...?"

Kagome blinked right back. "Huh?"

"What did you say?"

"I said something?" she asked innocently.

Inuyasha blinked owlishly. "Uh...yeah. What was it?"

"What was what?"

Inuyasha head slumped. Okay, maybe this beauty wasn't perfect. She had the weirdest talents.

Like changing the subject at the drop of a hat.

* * *

"Hmm..." Kikyou consulted the 'cook' book for her latest plan. What was next? "Let's see here...I've added the bat wings, the mushrooms, the slugs, the pumpkin, the werewolf eyelash, and my toe clippings. Now what?" Kikyou thumbed through the thick leather book. Finding the right recipe, her slender finger swept down the list and she noted the ingredients that would go into the next batch.

Her grandmother sure had a way of writing the items.

1. Moth demon's pinky toe

2. White baboon fur

3. A lock of a taiyoukai's fluffy pink tail

4. A loose tooth of a cute village orphan girl

5. A skirt/kilt thingy of a wolf prince

6. A miko's white hair ribbon

7. A hair youkai's comb

8. And a giant three-eyed cow demon that could fly and stand extreme heat

Oh yeah...This would take awhile.

* * *

"Mistress Kaede?"

"Yes, my child?" the elder miko asked the young mirror youkai.

The pure white child leaned softly against the glass of a old mirror. Said mirror currently resided in the back of the Shikon no Tama mines. Kanna would visit the old woman often for some civil company.

"How do you know the lord Inuyasha?"

"Well. A long while ago, when I was still young, I met him and his brother Sesshoumaru. Even then, fifty years ago, thy two were as they look now. Handsome young lads. They are, in truth, several centuries old." Kaede explained while cleaning up the shrine dedicated to the powerful priestess Midoriko.

"Oh. Was he always...?" The girl whispered, her stoic face giving off no emotions.

Kaede chuckled. "Yes, Inuyasha tis rude and always has been. But...it's his way. It's his rugged charm. I'm sure Kagome has noticed this factor."

Kanna looked off wistfully. "Inuyasha cares deeply for her."

"Love at first sight tis a silly concept." Kaede huffed, "But...I think the boy has fallen for it. I have not seen them together, but gathered by thy way that Kagome does not complain all the time about him, he must be acting nicer."

"And Kagome?"

"Thy girl tis too innocent. She does not understand thy concept of 'love'. She'll learn, though, I know she will." Kaede shrugged. "They'll grow attached...It'll just take her awhile to identify thy emotion."

"That would be true...if they had time." Kanna melancholy voice breathed.

Kaede's look darkened. "That tis thy one gift no one can give them. And Inuyasha tis not helping matters by keeping his betrothal to Kikyou from Kagome. They need to come clean with each other."

"How do you know so much about this situation?"

Kaede smiled an old smile. "It's an old woman thing."

Kanna sighed. "Yes, Kaede-bachan. It is good to talk to someone in my confinement. Especially someone who knows of curses."

Kaede mirrored her sigh. "All will be well for ye, Kanna. No matter how this ends, in some generation a pure hearted person will release ye." Kaede scowled, "It could have been Kagome. She has thy powerful and odd miko powers to do it. But she never advanced them."

A ghost of a smile flashed across Kanna's pale face. "There is still time," she whispered inaudibly and Kaede easily missed the words.

"Lady Kaede-sama!" A forlorn little voice cried.

"Aye, Shippou?" the woman asked.

The boy toddled in just as Kanna disappeared into the mistof her mirror world. He grinned up at the miko. "Are you coming back to work? I'm tired of Miroku's stiff quietness, Sango's mutterings, Naraku's and Kagura's scowling, and Hojo's accidents. I need company," the smalldemon pouted.

"Of course Shippou," the miko moved forward and lifted the boy into her arms.

"Guess what!" he suddenly commanded with his boyish charm.

Kaede humored him, "What?"

Shippou's grin widened, "I've talked to Kagome. She wants me to stay with her after this, no matter what!" he announced.

"Bless ye child," Kaede smiled at the boy. "You could have found no one sweeter than Kagome. Ye'll be happy."

"I know," the boy chirped, his green eyes bright. "I know I will."

* * *

Kagome clambered upward and stretched her arms up towards the sky. Sighing contentedly, she smiled to her companion.

He look placidly back at her.

Oh well...at least he's not that bad of company all the time.

"I have to get back. I washed the dishes this morning and swept the floors, but I still need to dust. Not to mention I need to go gardening and gather some food for dinner." Kagome explained as she walked backwards to her exit of the clearing.

Inuyasha swaggered up and twisted hisshoulders to pop his back. "Keh, whatever. I'll see you tomorrow?"

Kagome nodded, "Yep. Bye!" she waved and skipped from the area.

Inuyasha shrugged before leaping into a tree. He was unusually tired. Too much, in fact, to feel like going out to hunt for some dinner.

Maybe one of those blood sucking viscous bunnies would just walk into his stew pot?

Hey, a hanyou can dream.

* * *

NEXT CHAPTER: Thoughts


	12. Thoughts

5-09-2004: Happy Birthday to me! Not really, I hate my birthday, but whatever. Sorry for the delay, I've been distracted.

Remember, there are two days left, and then on the third morning, Kikyou's poison will be ready. The third day happens to be the day that the wedding is planned and the curse should be lifted.

Thanks for the reviews!

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or Snow White.

* * *

Black as Night, White as Snow

_Chapter Twelve: Thoughts_

* * *

'What makes her so special?' Inuyasha asked himself as he laid down, waiting for the sun to rise. 'Well, she's beautiful. But...er...isn't that, that word?'

_'SUPERFICIAL_!' he scowled. Who came off making such big words? He shrugged. 'Well, she has a temper too.'

Inu thought over all the times that she'd been able to match his mood, to yell right back when he shouted at her. He smirked. Few people could do that.

But at the same time of having such angry mood swings, she was able to be kind and sweet too. He'd heard somewhere that animals had some kind of uncanny way of being able to tell if a person was good. Based on all the wildlife that followed the maiden everywhere she went, she had to have some good qualities.

'Ah crap,' he groaned. 'I'm a love sick puppy,' and the thought disgusted him.

What did he know about her? Not much as far as he could tell. He didn't know her name, how old she really was, or if she had any pets. Hell, he didn't even know where she lived!

All she had to do was walk in front of him once and Inuyasha was enchanted. Love at first sight? Nah, he didn't believe in it. Maybe he liked her just because she was fun to be around? Because she was able to get him to smile and laugh like he hadn't done since his mother had died? Maybe it was because she wasn't royalty.

He was sick of royalty. Especially those like his half-brother.

Speaking of royalty...

He had to marry Queeny soon. The wedding was in three more days and he still hadn't figured out a way of getting out of it.

"Why me?" Inuyasha pouted, scowling at the air.

Seriously, he'd only met the woman once! And not only did he know the Queen even less than he knew the Maiden. Plus...she gave him this creepy feeling. A cold vibe that made him shiver and the hair on the back of his neck stand on end. Queen Kikyou's ashen skin also gave him the feeling of the dead.

It was so void of color it reminded him of one no longer among the living. Of one that had passed on. Was it possible to be only a spirit? Only a shell?

Inu shivered againinvoluntarily. Even thinking about his 'bride-to-be' gave him a bad feeling.

"Where is Myouga?" Inuyasha grumbled, his amber orbs narrowing in suspicion. Had that damn flea left him? "That coward..." he hissed. Bastard.

Sighing, the hanyou leaned further back into the tree where he sat.

The girl would be coming in a few hours; maybe he should try and get some sleep?

* * *

Sango sighed as she pulled on her rice sandals and demon-skin gloves.

'Why did Miroku have go and say those things?' she asked herself, pondering over the monk's troubling words.

"Sango?" Kagome whispered as she sat up from her heap of blankets on the floor.

"Kagome? Go back to sleep, the sun isn't even up yet." Sango whispered back, pulling her long brown hair back and tightening the ends in a band.

Kagome stretched before throwing her covers back. Running a hand through her hair, she pulled on her own rice sandals. "Nah, I'm awake. Might as well stay awake."

Sango threw a glance at the rest of her friends, still asleep and curled up in their beds. "Okay, let's go downstairs so we don't wake them."

Kagome nodded and led the way down the stairs. Busying herself with making some tea, Kagome asked Sango over her shoulder without turning around: "You okay Sango-san? You seem really distracted."

Sango took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "No."

Kagome poured the sweet tea into two wooden mugs and brought them to the table. "Care to talk about it?"

Sango eyed her newest friend. Kagome was a lot different than the others- besides being a good two feet taller. All she had to do was speak, and her soft voice would calm the most worried heart. A smile could sooth the most desperate and rash person. Could the taijiya trust the ex-princess? The answer was yes- of course. "Before the curse happened," the brunette started slowly, blowing on the steaming tea in hopes of cooling it. "Miroku and I used to travel around together. His old master's temple, where he grew up, was just a short distance from my family's training ground."

"Go on."

"Miroku's from a long line of monks. His family has always been close, and helpful, towards my people, the demon slayers. I was off training in the wild, as the headman's daughter, and didn't meet Houshi-sama until I was twelve."

"Yeah?"

"Uh huh. I had the pleasure," Sango scowled, "Of being around when Miroku became the perverted man he is today."

Kagome covered her laugh with a cough.

"His pick up line was 'will you bear my child?'"

"Oh, my Gods!" Kagome had to hold her side at the giggles escaping her mouth. "I could seriously see him doing that! Did he go down on his knees!"

Sango let a smile twitch at her lips. "No, but he did clasp their hands. He asked every woman he came across."

Kagome let her laughs die off as she examined the sullen woman in front of her. Her female intuition was working overtime and Kagome pinpointed the problem after a few minutes of thinking. "He never asked you, did he?"

"No, he didn't."

"Did you want him to?" Kagome asked tentatively, knowing she was dancing on thin ice.

Sango shifted some. She thought about lying, but knew it wouldn't work. "Not at first. At first it bugged the hell out of me to the point where I'd pound him into the ground whenever he said that damn line." Sango scowled. "It was so unmoral and rude. I grew up with him, was his friend, I always had the sense that it was my duty to keep him in line. Hence the beating him into a bloody pulp."

"And?"

"And," Sango sighed. "Yeah, I guess I did want him to ask me to bear his child. I would have said no, of course, but still...He didn't even try! I felt like he didn't see me as a woman."

"Did..." Kagome worried her lip, "Did that sense of duty you talked about turn into more?"

Sango spread her hands and looked down at the fingers. "Yeah, I guess it did. I didn't even know when it happened."

"But that was years ago, right? What's bothering you now?" Kagome asked gently.

"The day before the curse was laid, we were camping near a lake. It was nighttime and Miroku asked me to go for a walk with him, to see the stars. I was, of course, pretty wary." Kagome stayed silent and let her talk on. "While we were out in the forest, he pointed out constellations between the tree branches. He...asked me to..." Sango worried her lip. It was hard to say.

"Yes?" Kag prompted her friend.

"To marry him," Sango finished lamely.

Kagome smiled. "Oh, that's good!"

"No, it's not," Sango snapped and Kagome sobered. "Sorry, Kagome. I'm angry at myself, not you."

"I know," Kag whispered.

"I just...don't think a man can look at me as a woman. Miroku didn't mean it; it had to be a joke. And even if he was being truthful, like hell he'd stay faithful." Sango closed her eyes. "I turned him down."

"Oh...Sango...Why this? Why now?"

"He reminded me of it yesterday, said the offer still stood," Sango remarked dryly.

Kagome eyed her friend. Was it possible for Sango to truly think that Miroku didn't care for her? "You're blind."

"What?" Sango snapped her pink eyes up to Kag's blue ones.

"You're blind." Kagome repeated. "Of course Miroku meant what he said."

Sango glowered. "I doubt it."

Before the conversation could go further, Naraku and Miroku and Kaede entered the kitchen. "Think about it. Think about what you've said, what I've said, and what he's said," Kagome told the youkai huntress before standing up to make some tea for the others.

* * *

"Hello, Kanna," Kikyou called as she entered her room, covered in soot and sweat.

As her mistress changed clothes and washed off, Kanna stated coolly, "Hello, My Queen. Shouldn't you be downstairs finishing the plan?"

Kikyou turned to glare at Kanna with her cold eyes, "That is none of your concern. But if you must know, I need to let the mixture simmer for a few hours. It gave me time to get cleaned up."

"Oh."

"Kanna, how far along are my wedding plans?"

"Your dress, the bride maids' dresses, the flowers, the temple, the priest, and the flying monkey's tuxes are ready."

"...Flying...monkeys?" Kikyou asked slowly, her voice void of all emotion.

"Three of them, my queen. They were gifts from the hermit that lives in the mountains."

"Remind me to send him a house or something as a thank you," the queen murmured distractedly. "What does that leave to prepare?"

Kanna's blank eyes stayed constantly empty. "The cooks are working on the food and the peasants are working on the presents. Lord Sesshoumaru is working on finding the groom."

"Still missing?" Kikyou asked slowly.

"Yes."

"Oh. Right."

"Anything else, Queen Kikyou?" Kanna questioned.

"No."

"Than I shall be leaving." Kanna muttered seconds before descending into her mist.

* * *

"Your mama don't dance, and your daddy don't rock and roll," Inuyasha swung his silver head back and forth rhythmically. His eyes closed and his foot bobbed. "You're mama don't dance, and your daddy don't rock and roll."

"What's 'rock and roll'?" A soft voice called up to him and Inu had to wrap his legs around the branch to keep from falling.

"What?"

"What's rock and roll?" Kagome repeated.

Inuyasha gently fell from the heights. Bending over, he picked something up from the grass and rolled in between his fingers. Squatting down before a stretch of smooth grass, he let the item go.

"That's a rock," he pointed a clawed finger at the lump of solid gray. He flicked it, "That's roll," he informed as the not-so-round rock moved away from him.

"Oh. So that song you were singing was about a mom who isn't a rock and a dad that isn't able to roll?"

"I guess," he shrugged before flopping down. Reaching up he grabbed her arm and yanked her down, not roughly, beside him.

"Oh...fun..."

* * *

"Looking glass, looking glass, I like pork. Will my master plan, work?" Kikyou asked as soon as Kanna returned, an hour or two later.

Kanna didn't even flinch at the personal comment Kikyou had slipped in. The mirror youkai had worked for Kikyou since she was born, and her mother before that, the grandmother before that, and so on.

"-_To make this plan work, you'd need a brainstorming fit._

Since you're the one expected to use your brain, I highly doubt it.-"

Kikyou frowned dangerously. "What are you implying."

"That you like pork?" Kanna drawled emotionlessly.

"Oh?" Kikyou quirked a perfect raven eyebrow. "In that case go on."

Kanna sadly shook her head.

"_A grain of sand has a better chance of winning a match with the Go- shinboku,_

Then this plan since you are completely cuckoo..." Kanna rhymed.

"Hn," Kikyou growled as she glided off.

As soon as her mistress was gone, Kanna stated aloud, "She's known me for eighteen years and she still doesn't realize I can't tell the future."

Oh this was going to be a long lifetime for the poor trapped youkai child.

* * *

_**THUNK**_

"Lady Sango, if I may-,"

_**TINK**_

"-Speak with you-,"

_**WACK**_

"-I'd be most happy," Miroku proposed to Sango while they hacked away at the mine wall.

_**CRASH**_

"Sorry, Miroku-sama," said monk winced at her informal tone, "But I'm busy working."

"Yeah, all right, I understand."

"Good," Sango scowled as she slammed her pick into the solid rock again.

* * *

"How was your day with that mystery man of yours, Kagome?" Kagura inquired while polishing off her rice.

"It was okay," Kagome stared off into space. "We didn't really talk, just sat and enjoyed each other's company." 'It feels like I should remember something, something important. Is something else coming up that I need to know?' she asked herself. 'No, it's probably just the dwarves turning back to normal.'

"Well...at least he didn't eat you," Naraku commented, grinning wickedly.

"Would he really do that?" Shippou squeaked.

Naraku turned to the small fox, "Of course. I told you he was evil, didn't I?"

Shippou shuddered, "You know what he told me? That he's killed before with his sword!"

Kaede plowed through her food steadily, "Of course he has. I've seen him do it. But that hanyou is far from evil...unlike certain other ones..."

"I resent that, you old hag," Naraku sneered.

"Thy truth hurts, doesn't it?" Kaede chuckled before going back to her meal, a steaming 'evil' hanyou glowering beside her.

"Anyone up for a game after dinner?" Kagura drawled.

"What kind?" Kagome wondered aloud.

"Poker," Kagura replied.

"Strip poker?" Miroku wiggled his eyebrows suggestively at the girls...except Kaede.

"No," Kagura growled.

"Aw! Please!" Miroku begged.

"No." the wind sorceress bit out more firmly.

"Puh-lease?"

**_WACK THUNK BING CRASH BANG_**

Miroku, sporting several new bruises, narrowed his violet eyes at the normal sized human. Kagome sat calmly eating her food, a solid iron frying pan fisted in one hand.

"Was that truly necessary?"

"Yes," Kagome answered without looking up.

"Truly?"

"Yes."

"You sure?"

"Yes."

"How sure?"

"Damn sure, and shut the hell up and eat your food!" Kagome snapped. Damn that monk could be annoying. And it was pretty hard to break Kagome's patience.

"Yes ma'am," Houshi-sama squeaked before enthusiastically shoveling food into his mouth. He pointedly ignored the sniggering Kagura and the giggling Sango.

Like they'd want to face a pissed off Kagome...

* * *

_- Knock - - Knock - -Knock -  
_  
"I got it!" Miroku bolted from the living room scared by the death glares Sango was sending his way. 'Damn she's hot when she's scary...'

"Hello, can I help you?" Miroku grinned happily as he pulled open the front door. What was with all the visitors lately? They were in a magically secluded part of an abandoned forest...weird...

"Delivery," a burly man shoved the dwarf aside, dragging in a huge package behind him.

"But we didn't order anything!" Sango and the others entered the room to watch three men drop off a six by two-foot package, which was also a good three feet high.

"What is that?" Kagome asked, examining the edges of the package.

The burly man looked darkly at the only normal sized person in the cottage. "Already paid for by..." he checked the kanji on his papers, "The Big Bad Wolf. It's a giant glass case that can be used to keep something fresh in."

One of the other two men added, "Mr. Wolf wanted it for meat packing...he said something about saving some newly acquired pork..."

"But we're not this 'Mr. Wolf'!" Kagura snarled, preparing to lift her fan. She really needed to slice someone's head off. She hadn't for so long...

"Not our problem," the three interjected before leaving the cottage without another word.

Kagome glared at the door. "Well that was rude!" she huffed before walking back to the living room.

Miroku sliced off the wrapping and dragged it away to find a glass chest. It had a rectangular bottom, a thick violet velvet clad cushion, then a rounded off top. All perfectly clear.

"Weird," Miroku declared.

Hojo nodded energetically.

"Beyond strange," Kagura murmured, slightly disappointed that the deliverymen had made it out with their heads still firmly attached.

"I hate pork," Naraku growled.

"Yeah," Shippou agreed.

"Who's Mr. Big Bad Wolf?" Miroku asked.

"I have no idea." Kagura sighed.

While all the others were exchanging this, Sango looked more carefully at the chest.

Something squeezed her heart and tugged at her tummy when she got near it and thought about it. It gave off a cold and dark feeling, no matter how beautiful it was.

A solid golden band ran the length of where the lid connected with the bottom.

And the velvet looked so smooth...why put velvet in a case that would hold slaughtered meat? She wondered...

On one side of the thickly padded velvet was a higher corner. It had ivory lace sewn around it to make it into a square. It looked like a pillow where a head would rest.

Her intuition and senses were going nuts! Her gut was telling her that something important was coming. The glass gave off a dark ominous feeling as though a bad accident would happen soon.

Sango always listened to her gut instincts.

"I think it's a sign," she whispered, "A bad sign."

It reminded her of a coffin.

* * *

NEXT CHAPTER: Been There


	13. Been There

o.O; Don't hurt me!

Just a reminder, this is the last full day...the poisoned is finished, and the next day the wedding is planned and the dwarves will turn back into their -er- regular selves.

Er-Thanks for the reviews!

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha or Snow White.

* * *

Black as Night, White as Snow

_Chapter Thirteen: Been There  
_

* * *

"Be careful! To the left...no, wait, more to the right. More...more...Too far! Back to the left...uh-uh...wrong, now backto the right!" 

"Why don't you come out here and move it yourself?" Naraku yelled back, disgruntled. He glared with disgust back at the young woman sitting in the doorway.

Miroku, panting slightly, grumbled back (although politely), "Why, Kagome-sama, should this glass case sit outside in the woods?"

Kagome blinked back at him. "Because I'm not having that dirty thing sitting in my clean kitchen. Now hurry up Miroku, Naraku, Kagura, Hojo! The others have been at the mines for at least an hour waiting for you!" Kagome scolded, scandalized.

"We could've been there helping, but you can't decide where to put this DAMN THING!" Kagura screeched, her narrowed scarlet eyes promising nothing short of a horrible, painful, and disturbing death for the ex-princess.

Kagome huffed and crossed her arms. "Well if you're just gonna act that way...drop it and get moving. It's your last day...right? Or do you have to be there at the mines tomorrow when you change back to normal?"

"No, our time will be up and we can spend tomorrow here with you." Miroku stepped back from the heavy glass case and watched it tilt as the other three struggled to hold it. He walked back to Kagome...

...Who looked back at him wondering how he had gotten from lifting a corner of the glass box to standing next to her.

"MIROKU, YOU DAMNED HOUSHI! Get your ungrateful, lazy, perverted ass back here and help us!" Naraku's eyes possibly glowed with the fires of hell. Kagura, her teeth clench in concentration, glared at the grinning Hojo.

"You stupid human. If you could _STOP SMILING_ for one gods be damned minute, we might actually finish moving this!" she growled at the blue-eyed boy.

Hojo shrugged and turned away from her, looking up at the sun and wondering what the pretty lights were that danced in front of him.

Kagome sighed, "Seriously, just drop it. You can move it again when we all get back here tonight."

_**THUNK**_

"I didn't mean drop it literally..." Kagome sweatdropped and stepped forward to inspect the glass 'coffin' for cracks.

"Good, we can get going," Kagura grumbled, pulling out her fan to cool herself down. She hated sweating.

"Finally..." Naraku grumbled, stalking up the path without a backward glance. Kagura scowled after him before impatiently waving goodbye to Kagome and following at her own pace.

Miroku watched the two demon blooded dwarves saunter off to the mines in the mountain. Shaking his head sadly he turned back to Kagome. "You know? I do believe I'll die of happiness when those two are out of my lives forever..."

Kagome snorted. "Send me an invite to the funeral. You better get going before everyone starts to accuse you of slacking off."

Miroku's eyes widened in innocence. "Me? Why I'd never-,"

Kagome rolled her eyes and interrupted him yet again with a snort while folding her arms over her chest. "Drop it Miroku-sama, it's just me here, so get rid of the I-Am-The-All-Powerful-And-Innocent-Houshi act."

Miroku gave her a grin and a calm look before backing up the path to the mines, still facing her. "Have a good day, Kagome-sama."

"Yeah, you too." Kagome lifted her hand in a small wave while she watched the monk start up the path again. Following the path soon had the purple robes disappearing behind a bend through the trees.

Giving a soft smile in her friend's direction, Kagome started back for the cottage. While passing the glass case, a small jolt ran through her system. Pausing momentarily, the ebony haired beauty gave the box a weary look.

Something told her that the case wasn't as innocently as it looked.

'Get a grip,' she mentally chastised herself. 'It's a box, for Buddha's sake!' Shaking her head forcefully to try and scatter the tinge of terror, Kagome took the last few meters to the doorway in stride. By the time she'd walked through it, she felt relatively back to normal.

Snapping the door behind her Kagome gave a slow wandering look at the few rooms. Pursing her lips and spreading her hands on the brown apron covering her kimono, a thought struck her...although not painfully.

"It'll be my gift," she murmured under her breath. 'They'll like it to be completely spotless. It's only fair; they let me stay here if I clean, but I've been slacking off. My Mysterious Silver Haired Stranger,' as she'd dubbed him, flinching at the long string of words, 'will have to wait. He'll understand. My friends come before my...friend.'

Okay, technically that didn't make sense, but it worked for her and she shoved the guilt out of her mind.

Kagome strolled threw the household and located the mandatory items; this of course included a mop, a broom, a dust rag, and a wash rag.

Armed with the Weapons From Cleaning Hell, Kag turned a critical eye on the cottage. Where to start? It was a pretty small space, including one medium sized dining room, kitchen, living room, two down stair closets, one bathroom, one giant bedroom, and one upstairs closet.

Kagome winced and slouched her stiff no-nonsense pose. 'Okay, so it may look small on the outside but it's a whole different...er...--cup of coffee?-- when you're cleaning it.' She set to work on the first task of the morning: Scrubbing the floorfree of grime.

"Mew?"

"I did not miss a spot!" Kagome spluttered indignantly, her eyebrows drawing together as she tried to discreetly cover up the patch of floor with a potted plant.

"Mew..."

"I do not think you're stupid!"

"...Mew..."

"Oh yeah, _I'm_ insane," Kagome muttered sarcastically, "I'm not a cat talking to a human."

Kirara gave the maiden one final dry look before sauntering off to do things cats do-- chase shadows, fall asleep in sunlight, fall asleep in extremely impossible and uncomfortable positions in said sunlight, see creatures that aren't actually there...etc...

Groaning while rubbing at her eyes with a hand, Kagome then hung her head in shame. Blowing her cheeks out before letting the breath out to float her bangs upward, Kagome moved the plant back. Rubbing at the spot vigorously, Kagome muttered under her breath: "This is going to take longer than I thought."

Casting a glance around to make sure she was alone and that Kirara was out of earshot, a few more words slipped out.

"Hn, nosy busybody pussycat..."

* * *

"My Queen, where are you going?" Kanna's void eyes were widened slightly in concern as Kikyou draped a cloak around her shoulders. 

"I forgot to add the eye of newt." Kikyou said,looking at the amused mirror demon before giving a deadpan look. "Eye of newt, the flower. Apparently, without it, the recipe was able to take a shorter time. The poison won't be as strong, but it'll still work."

Kanna nodded slowly. She wasn't going to mourn the loss of Kagome, she'd already accepted that that particular woman wasn't going to be the one to free her. "Are you leaving now, then?"

"If I do, I'll arrive by dusk," Kikyou explained. "If I have to, I'll wait in the forest and poison my sister in the morning. I'll be back for my wedding."

"I'll have everything set up for you," Kanna nodded and backed out of vision. 'Sorry, Kagome.'

* * *

"Where is she?" Inuyasha growled under his breath. He was pacing back and forth, enough to dig a trail in his wake, in the clearing where he met Kagome every day. 

'I'm getting,' he broke off and groaned inwardly, '_MARRIED_ tomorrow! Gods...How'd it get this far? Fuck! Is it really that possible for someone to put something like that off for so long?'

Those thoughts kept revolving in his mind, but it just kept coming back to the one word that seemed to fit the situation perfectly:

Crap.

'I'll tell her. As soon as she comes,' his train of thought was momentarily cut off as a vision of her face floated in front of his face. His ears drooped and a barely audible whimper escaped his throat. 'I'm so fuckin' insane! I don't know her! She doesn't know me! Fuck, crap, shit...'

He growled low in his throat.

So what if he'd never openly showed any emotions to her? It was him! Not Prince Charming, not a quack, him! As much as she seemed to affect him when ever she came bouncing into his sight (weak knees, dizzy mind, lack of thought...er...) he'd been careful to keep it unnoticeable.

He kept his distance, used insults (not many, mind you, but still...), didn't let his eyes linger on her figure (...too much) and he was able to keep his hands to himself and not touch her as much as he wanted to.

He may not be the best with patience or intelligence but you had to give him credit for self-restraint! How many times had he wanted to yank her to him in a hug? To catch her lips in a tender kiss? To wrap an arm around her waist possessively? To tuck her head under his chin?

'Too fucking many,' he hung his head in misery. "I'm Inuyasha, Gods Dammit! I don't go get puppy love or crushes! I rip heads off people who disobey me! I try to kill by brother in his sleep! I punish those who defy...me..."

He drifted off as his mind reverted to some interesting ways of how he could punish the girl...

Catching himself drooling and having to hit his head into a tree in self-disgust, he forced his thoughts back to a safer topic.

"Where the Hell is Myouga?" His screech brought a few flocks of birds rushing out of the treetops. "Damn it all to hell! I can't do this! I can't get out of this stupid marriage on my own, Myouga knows I'm not smar-- patient enough to find an answer."

Casting a weary glance around with shifty eyes, the hanyou then slunk off to a tree. Not only was he talking to himself, buthewas also admitting that he wasn't smart enough to run his own life.

If it were anybody else, he'd distance himself from him or her and mutter things about how it was 'unhealthy to argue with your own mind'.

'But it's me...Keh...I'm not insane, so it must be alright.'

His mind drifted away from his problem with Queeny and again Kagome's face was presented before his mind's eye.

'What about her?' he grumbled, although he was, for some reason, not trying to clear the image away. 'Hell, if one pretty face affects me this much, Sesshoumaru has probably finally turned me into a lunatic...Damn you Fluffy!'

Maybe this girl he'd been meeting for over two weeks wasn't real? He'd created her simply to find an actual reason not to try and pursue the marriage with a perfectly attractive monarch.

"Or maybe this is all just the ramblings of an insane man...screw that, a _hungry_ man," he glared at his rumbling stomach. Rubbing his temples, Inuyasha felt the extreme need to slam his head into the first hard object he came across.

At that moment...it would be the tree he was sitting with his back to...Hmm...

Tapping his foot in boredom, Inuyasha looked up at the sun and found it was already hours after high noon. Damn that girl...she was late.

And she was probably just doing it to spite him! He'd finally gotten the nerve up to tell her that he was betrothed (and getting married in less than 24 hours) and she went and didn't even show up for the explanation (that she didn't know was coming...)!

"That witch...bitch..." Now which was a better insult? He'd always wondered about it...

So his large dilemma once againput out of his mind, the half demon started to argue with himself over whether a woman would take more offense to being called a 'Pig Faced Slime Bucket' or a 'No Fashion Sense Moron'...

Ah the wonders of stupidity...

* * *

The time barely registered in Kagome's mind as she pulled the roast pig out of the iron oven. 

Extreme pride in herself clouded her features as she thought over the way she'd hunted and killed the boar. She'd never liked taking the life of another, but she wanted something nice for the dwarves for their last meal together as, well, _dwarves._

Kag left the flame burning high as she placed an iron skillet of fresh cut veggies on a rack to cook. The meal was going to be perfect! Carrots, squash, cucumber, grilled fish, roasted pork, all dusted with a secret spice. After a few moments of sizzling, she pulled the vegetables off the heat.

Whoever said she couldn't cook could go screw themselves, Kagome thought firmly. Not only had she rubbed her hands raw with scrubbing, but she'd slaved over a hot stove for the entire day!

Plastering an excited smile on her face when she heard voices at the front door, Kagome dusted off her blue kimono and tightened the band that held her hair up in place. Standing proudly at the head of the set table, Kagome waited casually as the dwarves filed in, all of their noses comically in the air as they followed theirsense of smellto the source of the heavenly aroma.

Sango seemed slightly irritated as she came in last, her face twisted in an annoyed expression rather than the one of bliss her companions wore. Her scary gaze was plastered on the innocent looking Miroku.

Noticing her friend for the first time, her face warmed as a smile graced her lips. "Kagome-chan! Did you do this? It smells great!"

Kagome's grin mirrored the dim-witted one on Hojo's face. "Thanks...I worked hard all day!"

Sango looked around at the glowing kitchen, "I can tell. It _looks_ great too."

"Good, then let's eat." Kagome plopped herself down at the table without waiting for the others and began to cut the meat and distribute it among the eight plates. She looked up at the grinning 3-foot-people and gave them all a blank stare, "Well? You eating?"

Casting a glance at each other for a split second, the seven short-people raced to their seats.

Kagome smiled and finished serving everyone. "How was your day...Dear?"

"It was just awful, _darling_," Miroku launched into the description of how Hojo had managed to drop half a cave ceiling on Naraku. Said evil hanyou sat gnawing at his meat dejectedly.

"Yeah, honey, but it was just as hilarious as it was, er, um, sad...?" Sango joined in.

Kagura shook her head sadly at their role-playing. Honey, dear, darling? 'And they say _I'm_ not right in the head...'

"Oh, hey, Kagome-sama? How were you able to get this all done in just a few hours?" Miroku asked as he waved a hand vaguely at the clean dining room and the mouth-watering meal.

Kagome blinked blankly back at him before what he meant registered in her mind. "I didn't leave today. I've been here all day...I'll meet _him_ after dinner."

Miroku gave the young woman a disturbing wink, "Meeting a man after dark? Why, Kagome-sama, I didn't know you to be so kinky and dirty..."

Kagome placed her fork down and cocked her head calmly at the suggestive eyebrow wiggling. "Miroku? Were you entertaining ideas about the man I meet in the woods? I never knew you swung that way..."

Miroku opened his mouth before processing the question. "Of course I can envision what could go...on...WAIT! Kagome-sama! I meant you and him, not _me_ and him!" An expression passed the houshi's face that looked as though he'd drunken a pint of lemon juice.

Sango and Kagome roared with laughter as the rest sitting at the table (minus the forehead slapping monk) looked blankly back at the two girls, having missed the conversation.

"Do you think they've finally lost it?" Kagura whispered to her cousin who sat at her left, calmly eating his meal.

"My dear, whatever they had, they lost a long time ago..." Naraku carried on chewing his food thoughtfully. Kagura scowled before going back to her own pig.

"You know...I was thinking..." Kagome started.

"Always a dangerous thing," Naraku commented from down the table.

Kagome ignored him. "You know the owner of that glass case? Mr. Big Bad Wolf? I think I know who that is..."

"Yep, me too," Miroku nodded.

Kagome looked at him questioningly, "You know Kouga the huntsman from the castle?"

"Who? Never mind, I was talking about the wolf that has been crashing down houses at the edge of the forest." Miroku shook his head sadly, "Three pig demons and a little girl have already lost their homes..."

"Right." Kagome went back to her food. "You know what? I think I'll be heading out now," she cast a worried glance at the sun as it lowered itself closer to the horizon. "You guys can finish my food, I'm not hungry. I'll be back soon,but don't wait up, just in case."

"Ok," Shippou chirped while spearing most of her food on a fork and proceeding to shove it into his mouth at once.

As soon as Kagome was sure that the kitsune baby wasn't going to choke on the amount of pork stashed in his mouth, she excused herself and started for the door.

'I wonder how his day was...' she mentally sighed and started for the clearing.

* * *

Inuyasha picked at his claws nervously. Was she coming? Or had she decided he wasn't worth her time? Or did she find someone else? 

'Nah,' he dismissed the thought after entertaining it for awhile.

Plus if anyone even thought of handling what was obviously his (based on his scent he'd been sure to imprint on her every time he did touch her) he had reason to throw them off the nearest cliff.

A mental picture of a mini him doing that to a mini suitor left him grinning evilly and cackling maniacally.

Kagome found him under his tree 'Muwaha'ing and she couldn't help the grin that tugged at her lips. "Hey!" she called out to him. She was curiously pleased when he stopped his 'bad guy' laugh and blushed lightly.

"I didn't think you'd show up," he scowled at her, struggling to cover the smile that wanted to break out on his face at the sight of her. See what she did to him? Inuyasha did not smile, he'd smirk, but _smiling_ was out of the question.

Kagome toddled closer and reached out a hand to help him up from his cross- legged position on the floor, but instead of taking her hand and pulling himself up, he yanked her down. The sudden pull caused her to tumble downward with a squeak, but Inu caught her easily and set her solidly on the ground next to him.

She sulked back at him, "You could have warned me that you were going to do that..."

He gave her a toothy grin as a mischievous glint sparkled in his amber eyes, "Now where's the fun in that?"

Unable to hold her glare any longer, she finally gave into the urge to laugh whole-heartily. Inuyasha seemed to drown in the sound, and Kagome had to snap her fingers to pull his attention out of his little world. "Sorry I'm late. I had to do a few things for my friends."

"Keh. I didn't notice."

Kagome gave him a half-lidded sideways glance, but held her tongue. "How was your day?"

"Boring as hell..."

"Ooo fun!" she chirped, her sarcasm buried beneath the bubble of laughter in her voice.

Leaning back into the tree, Inuyasha sighed tiredly. He had to tell her...but he didn't want to do it right then...

Kagome settled back comfortably and watched the shadows stretch as the sun began to set. "My father used to watch the sunset with me."

Inuyasha snapped a golden gaze on her only to find her own blue eyes were still closed.

"I'd sit in his lap and we'd sit on a hill, and watch the sunset. I loved trying to find as many colors as I could," she sighed blissfully, caught up in her memory.

Setting his jaw grimly, Inu made a split second decision. Before Kagome could flick her eyes open, Inuyasha had her repositioned in her lap. They were twisted to the West and through the patch of space between trees Kagome could just see the sun setting over the forest.

There were streaks of colors, more beautiful than even the most skilled painter could create. Mixed in with the tangerine oranges and burnt yellows was a gold as deep and liquid as the eyes of the man who held her. Intertwined in a curve and a wave was a stream of pink and tangled in with it was the last of the baby blue of the day. Above the lighter colors were warmer ones. From behind them, in the East, to the top of the oranges was a range from the twilight royal purple to dusk violet, almost white.

It was the most breath taking sight and scene Kagome could ever remember.

She barely registered the fact that she sat in a man's lap, her own head tucked under his chin with extreme care. She didn't even notice when once hand creeped up and intertwined its clawed fingers with her own small ones.

She was too enchanted by the simple act of nature turning from day to night.

"It's perfect..." the smallest of whispers passed her lips.

"Mm," he hummed in agreement, pulling her tighter to his chest as soon as he noticed she wasn't resisting.

"Thank you."

"Anything for you," he murmured, his golden eyes closed as Kagome watched the last of the hues fade in the sky to a shimmering purple.

They were the first words said by him that she actually pondered. He'd sounded like he'd meant them too... "Anything?" She whispered.

"Mhmm," The hanyou sighed, unaware of the thoughts running through the young woman's mind.

"Then..." she forced herself to relax into him, "Tell me your name."

Amber eyes opened thoughtfully. Practically purring with happiness, Inu couldn't find anything wrong with her request as long as he learned her name in return. "It's-,"

"Master! NO!" A nasally voice cried out in time for Inuyasha to cut off his words.

Myouga bounded onto the hanyou's shoulder and sighed in relief. He'd made it! And before Inuyasha had unwittingly ruined his chances with the girl sitting comfortably in his lap!

Inu blinked at the panting flea before hissing, "Bug off," and flicking the tiny demon across the clearing.

"Oh...no..." the old youkai murmured while watching his lord and master open his mouth. The desperate situation was almost humorous by the fact that it was completely upside down as Myouga was on his head...

Kagome smiled up at him encouragingly. Inu looked back at her, deciding it couldn't be all that bad liking (loving) her if a simple smile made him feel so at... 'I don't know, at peace with myself. I'm normally thinking of ways to maim people.' Looking down at her with a softened smirk, he hugged her tighter.

"My name...Is Inuyasha I'm Lord Inuyasha of the Western Lands."

---

_"Yeah, Kikyou, what can I do for you?" Kagome asked sweetly, kneeling before the thrown. She happily eyed the cup in her stepsibling's hand, as it was put to Kikyou's lips. It was full of water. __Well_ water. 

"Yes, Kagome. I am now engaged. My loving fiancé, Lord Inuyasha, shall be visiting soon and I would like a bouquet of special flowers to decorate my room."

Kagome nodded, slightly confused. "Congrats… But would you like the red or the white roses from the garden?"

"You seem to have misunderstood me. I want special flowers, meaning I need you to travel to the valley a few miles away to gather those lovely wild flowers that grow there."

"Of course, Queen." Kagome backed out of the thrown room, head still bowed.

---

Kagome's eyes slid shut in a troubled expression that worried the hanyou. Suddenly they snapped open with such violent force that he tried to reach forward to make sure she hadn't hurt herself. Kagome scrambled up from the warm embrace and stared down at him with eyes widened in horror.

"I-Inu-Inuyasha?" she choked out. 'Oh, Gods, please let me have heard him wrong.'

The man blinked up at her from the ground. "Yeah..."

"Oh, Gods No...No...No..."

Inu yanked himself upward when the girl started to breathe heavier, as though hyperventilating. "Are you okay? What's wro-?"

"NO!" Kagome pushed away from him. "No, no, no, no, no..."

Was it possible? Was it actually possible to feel what she was feeling at that precise moment?

It was as if her heart had been torn out. 'This is ridiculous! I can't feel this way,' she grasped at the pain in her chest. 'It hurts so much, though! My gods...it hurts. It feels like I've been slapped...hard, over and over.'

Inuyasha watched her wide eyed as the woman stumbled backward as though in great pain while clutching wildly at her throat as she tried to even her breathing. What the hell was going on? What was wrong with her?

'Is it possible...? No, it can't be. If I _loved_ him, I'd _know_ it and I didn't feel this way before. I'd _know_ if I loved him. I mean, I don't even know him...' She looked around her as all the sounds and sights of the forest disappeared as her cluttered mind tried to sort out what was happening.

'I don't love him...Unless, unless...is it possible not to know if you love someone until they're taken away? Maybe, I ...I just didn't notice before because I never really thought if any of this was real. I never thought that it could be taken away...Oh Gods, what have I done?'

It had to be the most despairing feeling in the world, she decided as she wildly began to back away from the shouting hanyou. Inuyasha's words couldn't reach her hearing as her own heartbeat rang shrilly in her own ears. Jerking away whenever one of his grasping limbs came too close, Kagome began to back out of the clearing.

'What the fuck is wrong with her? What the hell is going on?' Inu ranted as he watched the woman stumble around while whimpering as though in pain. She wouldn't let him reach out and grab her, to hold her and calm her down. "What the hell?!" He yelled; it hurt him to know she was hurt and he couldn't help.

"No, no, no..." Kagome kept repeating over and over until her mouth finally stopped twisting. Taking a deep shuddering breath, she looked up with such bright and clear eyes that Inu couldn't believe that just moments before she wasn't acting like a sane person would.

Casting a few glances around as the clearing slowly came back in focus, her ocean eyes finally found his. "I-I have to go now. I'm sorry, but I c- can't stay. I'm sorry," she repeated as she fled.

Inuyasha watched her flee blankly, his mind trying to work out what had just happened. He'd told her his name, and then she'd just freaked out. She'd dragged herself away from him like he'd burned her.

Running a worried claw through his silver tresses, he licked his dry lips as his mind started to function again.

It was dark now, and the woman he cared deeply for, although he still couldn't understand why, was running through a forest alone, desperate, and upset.

"She could be in danger," he sputtered. "That stupid bitch has to be insane!" As the muscles in his bunched as he prepared to give chase, a prick to his cheek alerted him to Myouga.

"My Lord! You're a moron!" Myouga shouted angrily. "I tried to warn you, I tried to tell you not to say your name because she would recognize it and it'd upset her!"

Inuyasha, up till the last moment, was looking after the girl's path with a longing look, but he finally thought over the words. "My _name_, that's what set her off?"

"Of course," the flea shrieked while fretting his hands. "You're an idiot!" he wailed miserably, all he really wanted for his master was for him to be happy but Inuyasha seemed to always botch any chances of that.

"Why? Why Myouga?" Inu growled, angry at not being able to understand. He was tired of being so damn unsure about everything. It was driving _him_ insane!

"Because," Myouga sobered, "That young woman...well, I was visiting Totosai, that's where I've been, and I found out-,"

"Get to the point," Inu snarled.

Myouga swallowed thickly. "That young woman is the younger step sister to Lady Kikyou...the woman you are meant to marry."

The statement triggered several things in the hanyou's mind.

1. He'd upset the woman he wanted nothing more than to keep happy and safe.

2. He still had a wedding, his own, to attend the next day.

3. If the girl was the stepsister, then she would have to be royalty, thus she could marry him.

4. He could actually be happy with her with no messes like him marrying a peasant or his brother disowning him from the family inheritance.

And 5. That he'd heard from that kitsune brat that the girls' older sister (now identified as Kikyou) was trying to kill her.

So the woman, who he grudgingly admitted he loved, was out in the middle of a dangerous forest alone at night, and she had someone after her that had everything she needed at her beck and call. And if Kikyou, _Queeny_, even thought of hurting The Maiden, he'd tear her apart, no matter what Fluffy said.

"Myouga," he said calmly, which alerted the flea to his lord's immense anger more than shouting would have. "I'm going to fix this fuckin' thing if it kills me. I'll be right back."

Myouga barely had time to realize he was falling as the hanyou shot off in unmeasurable speed into the forest. "Of course, Master Inuyasha," he muttered distractedly.

Inuyasha raced through the trees, the only real thing on his mindwas catching the girl before she got herself in trouble.

But once out of the clearing, he cursed horribly.

Kagome had been traveling through the forest over hundreds of paths over the last three weeks. Although some scent trails were stronger than others, even Inuyasha's superior nose couldn't sort out her latest path from the rest.

Even if he had found the strongest weave through the trees, it was mysteriously covered by the scents of deer, rabbits, and other forest animals.

"Damn it, why did you have to be so difficult," he growled as he paused to look wildly around, his amazing eyes able to see through the night as easily as any cat.

A rumble in his chest at the thought of the hunt made him narrow his eyes. He needed to find her and sort it out.

It was only a matter of time before she tripped up and he caught her.

* * *

Kagome stumbled over the uneven ground and trippedover fallen trees. Her vision was curiously blured and she was amazed to find that when she reached up to touch her face, her eyes seemed to be leaking.

'Damn it, damn _him_...I'm crying!' she wanting to shriek at herself for being so stupid!

Not only had she gone and fallen in love with Kikyou's fiancé but she had fallen in love without even _knowing_ she was in love.

'I hate my life, I hate my luck, I hate karma,' she yelled in her mind. She didn't know where she was, she'd just ran in the first direction she could find. Kagome knew if she stumbled around she'd find the dwarves' cottage. The cottage was a thing of magic and if Kagome was lucky, Midoriko was watching over her and would lead her 'home'.

She trippedover an upturned root; it seemed to be reaching up solely to stop her from continuing her blind run.

And it took only one thing to convince herself that that thought was right:

Kikyou came walking calmly from the trees.

Even in her disturbed and angry state Kagome was able to find one coherent thought as she looked up pitifully at her stoic stepsister. 'God Kikyou, couldn't you come up with something more...uh...normal?'

The young queen was standing quite comfortably in britches with the disguise of a..._man_. Kagome didn't want to think why Kikyou looked so natural and felt so normal in it. But Kagome could see through the strong glamour this time, it all faded away and the ex-princess could see her stepsister clearly beneath it all.

Sitting up slowly, Kagome looked dully at the 'man'. It didn't matter how upset she was, she couldn't bring herself to disappoint Kikyou. She didn't mention the disturbing disguise.

The queen's goal in life had been to destroy Kagome, so why ruin the final moment? And at this time, Kagome would welcome an end with open arms.

Who deserved to live in life if they couldn't even know when they were in love? Humanity would be better off without her...

"You look upset," Kikyou murmured and Kagome almost smiled, bemused, at the believable fake sympathy in the voice. "Here, you should have something that could warm you up."

Out of a fold in the rough material of a dark brown cloak appeared a porcelain bowel. Over the top was stretched a fabric to keep the heat enclosed. Handing the bowel to the surprisingly un-protesting Kagome, Kikyou stood back to watch with sick satisfaction.

Kagome gave one last glance at her sister before sliding the fabric off to find how her death was going to come about.

The poor woman almost groaned in misery when she found that the weapon that would end her life would be _ramen_. 'So Kikyou _is_ insane, too bad Sango'll never she was correct about that.'

"Go ahead and drink it," Kikyou encouraged wickedly even though Kagome was already bringing it to her lips. One sip of the broth, that was all it would take...

As her famous cherry lips parted, a single sip of the tangy broth and a perfect noodle slid in. Kagome took a shuddering breath and accepted passively as she felt the heat flow out of her andall feeling in her body disappear.

She welcomed death.

And Kikyou watched the bright sky eyes of her baby sister, the most beautiful woman in all the land, drift shut as she drifted out of life.

As her glamour dropped, Kikyou walked gracefully away from the curled up body on the ground and started the long walk home to prepare for her wedding.

* * *

"_KAGOME_!" Sango cried in anguish. She and Miroku and Shippou had been the only ones who left just after dusk to find their friend. Everyone else believed Kagome would be alright and weren't worried. Kagome had told them not to wait up for her, after all.

But Sango had felt a pang and knew that evil had befallen her friend. Miroku followed obediently after her when she left the house and Shippou, out of pure worry for Kagome, had toddled after them.

But even Sango hadn't expected to find the strong-spirited girl as she was.

Her sorrow filled scream wound it's way throughout the forest. It shook the animals --the friends of the amazing young woman-- and the worried hanyou to the cores of their hearts.

"Sango?" Miroku ran as fast as his legs could carry him, but even his schooled expression failed him at the sight of Sango weeping over the still body of Kagome. "Oh, dear Buddha, give us strength..."

Sango was so absorbed in mourning the lost of a good friend that she didn't even notice when Miroku pried her away to look at the 'dead' beauty himself while cuddling the taijiya to his chest. But his sudden sigh of relief did grab the brunette's attention. "H-houshi- sama?" she stuttered.

Miroku turned back to her with a small grin. "I think you might want to look at this..."

* * *

A short time later, Inuyasha broke through the thick trees that surrounded a second clearing, one that he'd never been to. Kagome's sweet scent filled the entire landscape.

On one side was a small stone cottage and on the other was a sight that didn't even surprised him, although it probably should have.

A collection of every animal he'd ever seen or heard of that lived ina forest was in a circle, surrounding something. Deer, birds, badgers, skunks, foxes, wolves, rabbits, mice...The list could go on and on.

As gently as he could, Inu pushed his way through the crowd of normally skittish animals that didn't even seem to notice his presence. Each deep and colorful eye of every woodland creature held a look of mourning and of anguish.

His amber orbs drifted shut in pain at what he found in the middle of the strange procession.

A long solid glass coffin, that reached a little past waist height, sat in the center while seven tiny men and women, stood praying on either side. And in the clear case, laid out in her blue kimono with her silky wavy locks spread around her shoulders, her face slack and peaceful lay _the_ girl. _His_ girl.

A small weight appeared on his shoulder and he sluggishly looked into the red, sore, tear-filled eyes of Shippou.

"I finally know that you are evil," he whispered gently, his emerald eyes glued to the face of the woman who had promised to take care of him when there was no one left to do that.

Inuyasha sighed, his eyes drifting back to the face of the woman who had entranced him so easily. "How did you finally come to that?"

"Because, if you weren't evil, you would have been there to save her."

* * *

NEXT CHAPTER: Rude Awakening 


	14. Rude Awakening

_Moonlit Writer_: Thanks for the review, I really appreciated it. I know quite a few people are pretty OOC, and I cringe when I re-read some of my chapters, but then I remind my self that this story is more for laughs while my other stories are more serious. Then I burst into hysterics and start writing again...

Disclaimer: Je n'ai pas des Inuyasha ou Blanc Neige uh...neige blanc? (If I got that wrong... um... well, I'm out of school hence I'm out of French, which means the information has fled my mind.)

* * *

Black as Night, White as Snow

_Chapter Fourteen: Rude Awakening_

* * *

Inuyasha stood there, as still as the rest of the group, staring listlessly at the unmoving face. The young woman's skin was pale, and smooth, and still...just as if she were asleep.

Sango sniffled a little and stubbornly rubbed at her red eyes. "We warned her. We told her every morning not to talk to Kikyou."

"...You mean _I_ told her," Miroku interrupted, turning to look at Sango.

That earned him a hard slap in the chest. "Shut it, Houshi-sama! Don't be so impossible, poor Kago!"

"Shut up! Stop talking!" Inuyasha growled, holding up an irritated claw while he glared at the dwarves.

Sango glowered back at him, her hackles raising in defense. Who was this _moron_ to tell her what to do? She knew Kagome longer! First Naraku, and now this guy...

_'Damn, all half-breeds have to be idiots!'_ Sango raged in her head, not very sympathetic towards the dog demon.

"I don't want to hear her name while you're yelling at the monk!" Inuyasha snapped.

Sango blinked back at him, her anger momentarily replaced with confusion. "Why? Since when is using my friend's name disrespectful?"

"Let me say it a **different** way, then," Inu snarled, "I don't want to hear her name for the _first time _while you're yelling at the monk."

"...Oh. So she still hadn't told you? Her name, I mean." Sango's anger finally melted away as she asked her question with true interest.

"...No," Inuyasha admitted hesitantly. He finally realized how pathetic it seemed that he didn't even know the name of the girl he was in love with...

The dwarves blinked back and forth between Inuyasha, Sango, and Kagome.

"Oh. Then I'll have to introduce you," Sango stated grandly while a humorless smile twisted her lips. She then leaned over to nudge Inuyasha in the ribs with her elbow. "First, I need _your_ name," she whispered.

Inuyasha stared blankly back at her. Sango was going to 'introduce' him to the young woman he loved...not exactly how he pictured his fairy tale love story.

While he continued to space out and think over the oddities of his life, another of the dwarves stepped forward to give Sango what she'd asked for.

"He is Takashi, Inuyasha, Lord of the Western Lands," Kaede supplied, a wry grin on her old face.

Inuyasha started and then bent over to look into the chocolate eye of the ancient miko. "Kaede...is that you? Damn, I haven't seen you since you were a little brat...with the whole claw in the eye...sorry about that, by the way."

Kaede's grin dropped off and she glared at the hanyou. "I would rather not be reminded of that. Now, girl," she gave a sharp look at the taijiya. "Get to thou introductions, we don't have all day."

Sango sighed. This wasn't normal...

...Although, come to think of it, nothing in her life was 'normal'. She was a demon slayer, put under a spell to look like a dwarf, in love with a perverted monk (not that she'd ever admit that...especially to said monk) who was also a dwarf, and friends with an ex-princess who's older step-sister's favorite pass time was trying to kill said ex-princess.

Mentally shrugging, Sango took a deep breath and tried to remind herself that this was **_not_** a laughing matter...

"Takashi, Inuyasha, Lord of the Western Lands...This is Higurashi, Kagome, Princess of the Southern Kingdom," Sango said regally.

Inuyasha ignored the title, but instead thought of her name. _Kagome_. He rolled it around in his mind and let it sink in.

It fit.

A game children sang and played was Shippou's clue, and 'Kagome Kagome' was a game in his home country of Japan.

"Kagome..." he whispered under his breath, trying it out on his own. It seemed to roll off the tongue.

Perfect.

He even went so far, embarrassingly, to state in his own mind: _'Inuyasha and Kagome. Kagome and Inuyasha'._

They fit together. The names, they went together...at least he thought so.

Kagome...perfect. He wouldn't have changed it if he could.

Things had to be turning up. Sesshoumaru had told Inuyasha that the only way out of the marriage with Kikyou was if he married a (willing) royal female. Now, here was his princess (ex-princesses still had to count, right?) and he actually cared for her.

The only problem was thatshe was in a glass coffin, dead to the world...no pun intended. What to do, what to do...?

The best Inuyasha could up with was to use the situation to his advantage. First he needed to get out of the marriage and then worry about saving Kagome. How? Easy...

If he could find a way to carry the fragile case to his castle, Inuyasha could use Kagome's death as a way to prove to his elder half-brother that Kikyou would not be a good addition to the Western Lands.

With Fluffy convinced, the betrothal would be broken and Inuyasha would be single again.

...Hopefully that wouldn't last long, he thought as he looked down onto the still face of the princess.

* * *

"Kanna, after my wedding we'll have to honor my sister's death. It's only right to give her a proper funeral and burying. You'll have to remind me...And I'll have to retrieve her body..." Kikyou breezed into her room, as graceful as ever.

"Yes, my Queen." Kanna's smooth face was still and gave no hint to emotion what so ever.

"Good. And the preparations for my wedding? I expect that my invitations and gowns are all ready and the minister has been paid for." Kikyou gave a pointed look at her weapons' wall, "I did put Kouga in charge. If my wedding isn't set up, I have every right to punish him."

"Of course," Kanna whispered, her eyes blank.

Kikyou sighed. "I haven't seen him since I fist met him...do you think Lord Inuyasha is doing all right?"

Kanna tilted her head slightly as she looked at Kikyou. The queen was flushed from her hurried journey back to the castle...the hint of color made her seem more real, and not like a porcelain doll.

"Yes, I am sure M'Lord is fine. My mirror would have told me if this was not so," Kanna's small hand tightened around the small, round looking glass.

Kikyou nodded gently before turning back to her weapons' wall. She began to count each and every dangerous item. Soon enough, however, she paused and paled. "My grandmother's fork...where is it? It was an heirloom! It would have done her honor to have used it to eat with at my own wedding..."

Kanna's head turned slowly toward the wall and took in the blank spot where the piece of metal would had been. "I believe..." she said slowly, "That Kouga came in earlier to get it. I think he set it next to your dinner plate so it wouldn't be forgotten in the...excitement."

Kikyou nodded and twisted her hands in her lap, a rare sign of nervousness. She was used to having to take care of everything herself, and didn't very often have to sit back and watch everything go on around her.

She was not lazy. Kikyou had the habit of keeping busy, and doing what needed to be done.

Now what could occupy her until her wedding if everything was ready?

* * *

His amber orbs narrowed as Inuyasha laid them on the dwarves. "I need to bring Kagome back to my castle."

"I know some people have odd tastes in decoration," Sango stated dryly, "But isn't that a little over board?"

The hanyou glared back at the young woman. "I need her there as proof to my half-brother that I can't marry Kikyou."

"Using her for your own problems? And I thought I was low..." Naraku quirked an ebony eyebrow in the second half-demon's direction.

Inuyasha growled his warning low in his throat.

Before the dog demon's clawed hands could reach Naraku's throat, sadly, a solid object slammed on top of the evil youkai's head.

"Naraku," Kagura purred deceivingly, "Use Kagome to get back at Inuyasha one last time and I will personally see to it that you never return to your normal size."

'Normal size'...Inuyasha didn't even want to think about what that meant...

"Are you going to help me or not?" Inu snapped, tired of listening to these idiots yell at each other.

"Fine," Miroku broke the tension. "We will, if you are sure that it will help you."

"Of course I'm sure," Inuyasha hissed. How many damn times were they going to make him repeat himself?

Miroku let the insult roll off him easily. He strode over and lifted a single corner of the coffin; Naraku, Hojo, and Inuyasha took the hint and grabbed the remaining three.

As they began to lift and slide the case over uneven ground, it hit a few rocks and Kagome's body leaped inside from the turbulence.

"Careful!" Miroku shouted at the others. "We don't want to hurt her!"

Inuyasha blinked.

"Monk...How the hell are we supposed to hurt her if she's...dead?" Inuyasha's rough voice lost its edge as he seemed a little lost. He hated feeling lost.

Miroku gave him a weird look, his violet eyes clouded with some emotion Inu couldn't name.

"Excuse me, Lord Inuyasha, but can't you hear it?" Miroku asked slowly.

"Hear it? Hear what?" Yep, the edge to his bark was back.

"...

...Her heartbeat," Sango whispered from the sidelines, her pink eyes filling with fresh tears.

All of his energy was spent as the young lord strained toincrease his hearing even further than he already could. And, sure enough, seconds later a faint 'thump' sounded. "...

...She's alive?" The golden eyes widened further and he waited again...moments later, much later than seemingly possible for a person to stay among the living, a second heartbeat sounded.

But how?

Kikyou had poisoned her! Hadn't she...?

In his excitement, Inuyasha almost dropped the glass onto the ground. He caught it again in time, but the coffin still jolted...

...Somehow Inuyasha missed the flutter of lashes that accompanied the jolt.

"How!" Inuyasha kept looking between the faces of all seven dwarves. Had _they_ kept her alive? Kagome had hinted to him that there was something magical about them, but she never told him _what_ was magical about them.

"I have a...theory," Miroku said slowly, not wanting to raise the hanyou's hopes any more. There was no promise that they could save Kagome.

"And what the hell is that!" Did these morons take **lessons** in how to keep an irritable hanyou in suspense, because they sure as hell would get a lesson in _**why**_ not to keep an irritable hanyou in suspense...

"Well, I believe Kikyou...forgot an ingredient in her potion. For most deadly poisons a key part is a thing called the 'eye of newt'," Miroku began.

"What he's trying to say is that we think Kikyou didn't add it, for whatever reason, so the poison didn't work. So it couldn't **kill** her, but it _could_ put her in an enchanted sleep," Sango finished for him.

_"My Queen, where are you going?" Kanna's void eyes were widened slightly in concern as Kikyou draped a cloak around her shoulders._

"I forgot to add the eye of newt." Kikyou looking at the amused mirror demon before giving a deadpan look. "Eye of newt, the flower. Apparently, without it, the recipe was able to take a shorter time. The poison won't be as strong, but it'll still work."

"So in other words, Queeny screwed up?" Inuyasha's eyebrows were scrunched together.

Miroku nodded solemnly. "That's the only good news, though. I don't know how we can wake Kagome-sama again."

"How do you know these things?" Inuyasha looked at Miroku with a guarded expression.

Miroku shrugged easily, "I don't know. I just do; does it matter? She's alive, isn't she?"

Inuyasha swallowed.

She wasn't dead.

_**She wasn't dead.**_

That meant he could still get her back. Apologize for lying to her...

'Although, technically, I didn't _lie_. I just didn't tell her the whole truth the hanyou huffed in his mind. But...he wasn't sure Kagome was into technicalities.

"What the hell are you all just standing around for? We need to get her to my castle," Inu snapped, taking the dwarves by surprise.

"Why?" Shippou asked innocently.

"Just because she's alive doesn't mean I still don't need her to get out of my marriage," Inu growled at the adorable little kitsune.

"Oh, okay. In that case..." Shippou gave a sharp look to Naraku and Kagura. "Servants! I command you to take Kagome-Okaa-san to the Evil guy's castle!" He clapped his paws for added effect.

Kagura kneeled down to look the fox in the eye, "Oh I'll show you 'servant'..." she growled before leaping at the young boy.

While Shippou ran in circles, screaming bloody murder, Inuyasha, Miroku, and Naraku hefted the glass coffin up, careful not to jar it in movement.

Naraku and Inuyasha, being of demon blood, didn't tire easily. Sango, Miroku, and Hojo switched off with each other so they could take rests in-between their turns.

Surprisingly, it didn't take long to arrive at Inuyasha's home.

"FLUFFY!" Inu bellowed as he kicked open the front door so that they could carry the case in. "Sesshoumaru, get your tailed ass down here!"

"I thought we went over what I would do if you called me 'Fluffy' again, little brother," Sesshoumaru, in all his glory, drawled from the top of the staircase.

The welcoming was a little more cheery from Rin.

"Inu-bro! Inu-bro! Inu-bro!" The tiny little girl chanted as she raced around Sesshoumaru's legs to get to her other stepbrother. She lunged and glomped one of Inuyasha's red clad legs in a death grip. "Rin missed you!" she announced, giving the grinning half-demon a sugary smile.

"I missed you too, Rin," Inu told her, but too quietly for the others to hear. What? You didn't expect him to let them know he could be sweet to children, did you?

"What do you want, brother? I was just about to prepare Rin for the wedding...where you should be right now," Sesshoumaru glided down the steps and then gave a dry, humorless chuckle. "Or do you not have enough honor to turn up at your own wedding?"

Inuyasha growled; Sesshoumaru returned the gesture and they both battled with glares.

Miroku, well away from the brewing sibling brawl, whispered in Sango's ear, "If I had known we were going to watch a dog fight, I would have brought popcorn."

Sango, if she were still not pissed at the monk, would have laughed. Instead she simply sidled away from the now putout monk.

What could poor Miroku do to show Sango how much he really cared?

...Better not stick around to find out.

Kaede cleared her throat to break the tension between the two brothers. "Inuyasha-sama, I do believe you have something better to do with your time...?" she gave a pointed look at the glass coffin that was sitting in the entryway.

Inuyasha stopped mid-growl and blinked until his mind was back on topic.

"Oh...yeah...Fluffy," The hanyou ignored the threatening flash of claws, "I will not marry Queen Kikyou."

"Then you will not keep your title and riches and will be disowned by this family."

"Actually," Inuyasha gave his older half-brother a cool look, "I won't be marrying her because _you_ will call off the wedding."

Sesshoumaru's hackles rose, "I will do no such thing, and I doubt you could change my mind."

"Oh? And this won't?" Inuyasha growled and waved a claw at the coffin. "Look what Kikyou did to her own _sister_!"

Sesshoumaru's attention was drawn towards the enchanted sleeper. She was more captivating than his brother so he stepped away to scrutinize the maiden's face closer. "Kikyou's sister?"

"Stepsister," Shippou chirped from the corner.

"Hm...Surely this maiden deserved whatever she is cursed with. I have met Kikyou and she is a level-headed, charming woman."

"Yeah, if you get past the fascination with eating utensils and the obsession with monkeys..." Sango hissed under her breath.

Sadly her quiet comment brought the demon lord's attention to her.

"I would credit your information more than my brother's...is what he tells me true? Queen Kikyou has done something to her own sister to make her sleep in such a way?"

"Stepsister," Shippou corrected again from the back corner, but was ignored...like most of the time.

Sango stood straighter and looked the lord back into the eye. "Yes," the demon huntress stated without a hint or trace of disbelief.

Sesshoumaru sighed silently. What was it about his bothersome, pesky little brother that brought trouble all the time?

This reminded him of the time when as atoddler Inuyasha had sneakeda frog ontoa visiting king's dinner plate...

"Inuyasha..." Sesshoumaru finally turned back to his brother. Damn the little hanyou brat...he'd won again. "I cannot force you into a marriage with a woman of unquestionable morals-."

"Fuck yeah," Inuyasha ground out, angry with his brother for even trying in the first place.

"However," Sess continued, "If I find that any of you here have lied to this Sesshoumaru or had this staged, I will personally hunt you down and hang you by your entrails."

A few of the dwarves gulped and gave each other nervous glances.

Unlike the others, Kaede's glance was on the outside sky. Judging by the sun it had to be late morning...

...The curse wore off at sundown.

Or it was suppposed to.

Maybe it was noon...

...Or even midnight...?

Maybe the old miko should have paid more attention when Midoriko was casting the curse. But that is kind of hard to achieve when your entire body is slowly shrinking to roughly 2/3 of it's original size.

Kaede toddled over and tapped Sango on the shoulder. The taijiya, in Kaede's mind, was the only one beside herself that had any common sense. The elder of the two women tilted her ancient head in the direction of the sun.

Sango followed Kaede's line of sight and saw the time.

"Uh-oh! Oh, we have to get back! Inuyasha, grab Kagome," Sango ordered as she began to shuffle the group towards the door. It had taken them hours to get Kagome to the castle (they had started not long after sunrise and got there almost at noon) so it would take a long time to get back.

"Wait, why does _she_ have to go?" Inuyasha complained before a thought hit him. "Why the hell do **_I_** have to go!"

Sango gave him a sharp look, reminding the hanyou that **she**, not him, was in charge of their little group. Inuyasha was just someone she'd let tag along...

Inuyasha didn't like it -and would have shownSango he didn't like it- if some of the dwarves hadn't already started carrying the coffin out.

They didn't look like they were dropping the glass case anytime soon so he didn't have much choice but to follow if he wanted to stay by Kagome.

After all but shoving the others out the door, Sango turned back to Sesshoumaru.

She gave a slight bow (a little stiff since she wasn't used to bowing before demons...she killed them, not served them). "Thank you M'Lord for allowing us the courtesy of being welcomed into your home. Sorry for the sudden departure and thank you for allowing that ass of a half-demon out of the marriage."

She paused for a minute before looking back up into Sesshoumaru's eyes.

"I may not like Inuyasha much, but I have a feeling that Kagome would be devastated if he married Kikyou and not her." With one last nod of respect, Sango whipped around and was gone.

Sesshoumaru stood looking after his guests for a moment. Looking back and forth between Rin (who was at his side, pouting at her adopted brother's leaving form) and the group leaving, decided that not all humans could be bad.

* * *

"Will you watch where you're going!" Inuyasha snapped, glaring at Miroku when the monk stepped on his toes.

Miroku instantly defended himself, "That must have been Lady Sango who stepped on your foot, not myself, surely."

"Nice try, Houshi-sama, but I'm over here!" Sango snapped from several feet in front of the little group. She was trying to find a smooth path through the forest back to the seven dwarves' cottage.

Miroku sighed. "I'm sorry everyone. It's been a hectic day and I'm not in the mood to lie smoothly right now," he announced sadly.

"Oh, I'm sorry you can't weasel yourself out of situations anymore. It must be a pain," Inuyasha snarled (his foot still hurt); even after such a short time in the monk's presence he wasn't sure he liked the monk too much.

In fact...Inuyasha was now convinced that all men of the cloth deserved to die.

But that might be due to the fact that his foot was crushed, he was tired, and the girl he wanted to be with for all eternity was in an enchanted sleep.

It was not a good day.

Perhaps one of the worst days of his life.

"Watch out!"

But the warning came too late and Inuyasha, along with Naraku walking next to him, had already had his foot caught in the uprooted tree root.

Before you could say 'the day just got worse' the entire group went head first into the rough ground...the first falling people's limbs entangling into the other's arms and legsuntil they all fell together.

...The fragile, glass coffin slamming into the ground first.

* * *

Her silky eyelashes fluttered open, revealing slightly clouded blue-gray eyes. The beautiful stormy orbs took a moment to adjust to the slanting rays coming through the trees all around her.

The first thought to nudge itself into her numb mind was that she was lying comfortably on a silken, padded bed.

It felt nice.

The second thought to enter her head was that her view of what looked like the canopy of a forest was somewhat obstructed by silver and gold.

An interesting combination...most would associate the colors silver and gold with money, but the young woman's mind immediately snapped from the colors to a person.

That person, of course, had a name. But names weren't the best thing on her mind at the moment.

The maiden proceeded to give a wide yawn and then arched her back like a cat to wake herself up.

It had been so comfy in her little dream world, why had someone had to have waken her up?

It was so beautiful...there were flowers, and unicorns, and singing, puffy, cotton-ball clouds...

...And then some major shake had woken her up. To whoever had shaken her:

_Bastards..._

Now, back to the silver and gold.

"G'Morning...how did you sleep?" A fairly distinctive male voice interrupted her musings. "You take your sweet time waking yourself up, girl."

"Mphf!" Kagome mumbled, throwing an arm across her eyes to block out the slanting rays from the sinking sun. "...Inu...Yasha?"

"Ah, so you do remember me. Amazing, with how long you've been knocked out, wench, I'd think you'd've forgotten everything...But first I have a question..."

"No questions, too early..." Kagome snuggled deeper into her little padded cushion where she had been sleeping.

"It's almost evening," Inuyasha prodded her shoulder and then continued to poke her 'till she finally rolled over to face him. "And I'm being serious, I have a ques-."

"Aren't I dead?" Kagome interrupted.

"No, Kikyou screwed up," Inuyasha snapped, tired of her holding off what he wanted to ask.

"Oh. Aren't you married?" Kagome made a small face at his slightly blurred image.

"Are you drunk?" Inuyasha responded. "You're acting drunk..."

"No...just tired," Kagome frowned at him. Why did his face keep swimming around? Didn't he have the decency to keep still while she was angry with him?

"..." Inuyasha sighed and finally clasped her hands in one of his callused palms. "Hey, will you stop moving around? I have to ask you a question," He growled.

"I'm moving! You're the one upside down and on the ceiling...or tree top or wherever we are..." Kagome trailed off as she closed her eyes tightly. When she finally opened them again, everything seemed to be in focus and staying in one spot...

...Who knew poison was this...disorientating?

"...What did Kikyou try to kill you with?" There was Inuyasha's voice again...always scattering her thoughts. Damn him...

"Ramen. Chicken ramen...or beef...or some kind of meat ramen." Kagome removed one of her hands from his and shoved him a little to make him stop drooling after she'd mentioned ramen. "_That _was your important question?"

"Huh? No...Actually, it was 'will you marry me' but you pretty much ruined the romantic mood. I was actually going to..." Inuyasha began to list how he was _supposed_ to propose, and how Kagome had ruined it, but his words fell on deaf ears.

Marriage.

**_Marriage._**

Kagome kept blinking at the hanyou. Maybe she was still asleep in her little dream world, dead, and this was some bizarre fantasy...

...No, if it was _her_ fantasy, candles, roses, and sweet words would have been involved.

So...he _did _just propose...

Kagome smacked him lightly on the side of his head to stop his ramblings. He looked down at her wide eyes. She was still laying in her little coffin, on the ground of the forest, and he was sitting cross-legged beside her.

"Marry you. _Marry you_! I've only known you for three weeks. And most of that time I didn't even know your name!" Kagome's mind kept going over how weird (and pleasant) the situation was.

"Actually..." Inuyasha turned an unnaturally somber face to her. "You've known me for a few years..." he paused and pointed a finger lazily at himself, "Remember? Hanyous don't age like humans. We stay young longer."

"How long have I been asleep!" Kagome looked horrified. A few years? **_A few years_**! Oh god...

She looked so horror-stricken that Inuyasha sighed, his fun ruined. Did this girl have to take _everything_ so seriously?

He laid a hand on her shoulder to push her back down as she began to struggle to raise from the little bed that was in the coffin.

"Calm down," he growled. "You've only been asleep since this morning, just before sunrise."

"Oh." Kagome blinked.

Then it dawned on her.

This guy had lied just to scare her!

Of course this earned him a hard hit to his chest. "You jerk! I can't believe you just did that! You bastard! You just purposely...purposely...wait, how'd I wake up? I thought I was dead."

Inuyasha scratched the back of his head.

This was where he came in with some charming, hero story to make her fall in love all over again. A dashing tale of how his kiss, a kiss from a true love, had awoken her from her horrible curse.

Like who would believe that? This was _Inuyasha_...

"Um...you see..." He swallowed.

"Actually," A still very dwarf looking Miroku stepped out of nowhere...followed closely behind by the others. "We found out that every time you were jolted...whatever poisonous food, apparently ramen...that was lodged in your throat came a little loose."

Sango deadpanned behind him. "What he means to say is that they dropped you and you choked up that damn thing that was poisoning you."

Kagome pursed her lips. "Oh, wow, what a romantic tale..." she drawled sarcastically.

"Hey, you get the guy..." Inuyasha grumbled.

"Oh, yeah, how wonderful."

Inuyasha poked her. "Could you be any happier?"

Kagome sighed and then stretched. "Still tired," she explained.

"Oh."

Kagome stopped mid-stretch and turned to the others. Hmm...it was evening; they were still dwarves, so they had to change soon. So that wasn't what was bothering her...something was nagging at the back of her mind.

Oh...so that's what it was.

Turning back to Inuyasha, she gave him a look that a mother would give to a disobedient child.

"Has anyone told Kikyou yet...?"

* * *

"He's going to come," Kikyou snapped as yet another guest left after giving her their apologies for being left at the alter.

She was truly beautiful...she'd held back nothing. Her thigh length, gray-tinted black hair had been brusheduntil it shined and hung loose around her hips. Her silk white kimono was long and dragged along the ground a few feet behind her. Satin blush-pink flowers were sewn on strategically on her gown and her obi matched the shade.

She was even wearing some blush, a pale pink, on her cheeks to give her face color.

Behind Kikyou was a mountain of presents, all wrapped prettily, and a snow white cake.

It was almost dusk and the wedding had been set to begin at noon. The minister had long since disappeared...some witnesses even saw him leave with pretty maid...

The guests had also started to disperse and the last of them were beginning to sneak away from the fuming bride.

Besides the lack of guests, there was also a lack of a groom...

"Inuyasha...where the hell are you!" Kikyou hissed. Ooo, now she was sure Hell was where he was going...even if she had to drag him there herself.

Off to the side, Kanna let a silent laugh slip. Just like Kikyou to be more beautiful when she was scheming something evil than any other time...

* * *

"You never answered me," Inuyasha sulked. Damn, Kagome had him acting more like a child than the cocky, arrogant, irritable...

...Better stop, he wasn't doing himself justice.

Kagome looked back at him for a moment, and seemed to study him. She had finally climbed from the coffin and now sat ona stump. Inuyasha sat nearby and the dwarves weren't far off...waiting for the moment they became normal again...

...Or as normal as they had ever been.

Kagome looked at him, straight in the eye, and said calmly. "I don't know..."

Inuyasha swallowed. He'd never thought about what he'd do if Kagome turned him down... "Would it help if I...?" he cut himself off. You know what? He was tired of asking permission for everything!

Damn it! He'd been so meek lately!

He met one woman and she turned him from a strong man into someone who needed advice everyday!

That's it.

Inuyasha got up silently and kneeled down before Kagome...who looked at him, startled.

He laid down one knee in the dirt and lifted his other leg onto the foot...Kneeling on one leg. Inuyasha then took Kagome's hand into his own and looked at her...eye to eye.

His molten gaze, his liquid golden eyes, his amber orbs...they expressed something in them. An arrogance that challenged Kagome to refuse him what he wanted. It was a confidence that made her feel like she'd do anything he asked...

...And he _wanted_ her.

"Kagome," He said, and then relished the name on his tongue. It was the first time he'd ever called her by her name. It felt so...so right.

"Yes?" She replied faintly. Why was she feeling so weak in the knees? He'd never affected her like this! Sure, she'd been attracted, but now it felt like her heart would burst...her stomach was twisted in knots.

The chatting of dwarves dwindled and then ceased as they watched the scene unfold.

"Kagome...Will you marry me?"

It was question. She knew it was a question, it _sounded_ like a question. But the look in his eyes told her that he _commanded_ it.

A command from a lord.

Now who was she to refuse a lord?

* * *

NOTE: In the original Brothers Grimm Snow White, when the prince found Snow White in her enchanted sleep, he wanted to bring her back to his castle to sleep there forever more. But, while bringing her home, he tripped, which made Snow White choke up the apple and wake up. There was no kiss from true love involved. Kinda unromatic...

* * *

NEXT CHAPTER: The Final Chapter


	15. The Final Chapter

Thank you for all the reviews and for reading this. I hoped you enjoyed it as much as I loved writing it!

Disclaimer: For the last time on this story, I do not own Inu Yasha, Snow White, or any songs I happened to use throughout.

* * *

Black as Night, White as Snow

_The Final Chapter  
_

* * *

Their hands were clasped in the air over their heads; his second arm was wrapped snuggly around her slim waist while her hand loosely cupped his shoulder. The couple revolved slowly. 

He, instinctively, brought her closer and she melted into him, her head resting on his firm chest while both sets of eyes were closed.

As they continued their slow waltz, Inuyasha stated simply, "I love you."

Kagome pressed herself more firmly against him as she smiled. "Why?" She asked, really wanting to know.

He scowled as he tried to come up with an answer that would be truthful, but at the same time would make her happy.

The hanyou never was the best with words.

"I love you...because you are you," he started slowly. Kagome remained silent so he continued. "I love you because when you laugh, my heart skips a beat. And I love you because your smile makes it stop all together. I love you because you're beautiful on the inside and the out. And I love you because, even though you're so beautiful, you decided to stay with me. Me. Not anyone else."

Kagome, her face hidden against him as he continued to lead them in the lazy dance, grinned.

Apparently Inuyasha had said the right things.

For a few moments everything around them seemed blurred, especially the trees. A warm wine and honey tone filtered through the trees as the sun slowly drifted below the horizon, the top rays still visible.

On impulse, Kagome breathed, "I love you, too."

It was amazing. She'd known him for only three weeks. Almost the entire time she had no idea what his name was. But his name, his title, didn't matter. When he was with her in that little clearing, all his barriers were down and he was himself.

Granted, 'himself' included being rude, rough, and arrogant. But Kagome hada feeling that all that time, Inuyasha had never been more of himself than he was with anyone. Maybe a little sweeter and a little more patient because she wouldn't have come back otherwise...

...At least she didn't think she would have. Guess we'd never know.

Following her earlier example, Inuyasha chimed, "Why?"

Kagome grinned, expecting it. "I love you for who you are."

Inuyasha smirked...then frowned. "That's it?" he prodded when she didn't go further.

"Alright...Hmm...I love you because you're rude without being overly mean about it. I love your ears."

One of said ears flicked on the crown of his head.

"I love you because you put up with Shippou. Not all that well...okay, really badly, but at least you try. I love you because I'm the kind of person who has to take care of the world...but Ihave to have someone to take care of me. And that's you."

They slowed down and drifted a little apart so that Kagome could look at him as she made her little speech. As they stood still, blue clashed with gold.

"Oh...And I love you because you smirk, I don't think I could love a man who smiled."

"You know...I think I can handle that," Inuyasha proclaimed before he dipped his head and captured her lips in a sweet, somewhat chaste kiss. Kagome's arms looped around his neck, her fingers becoming entangled in his long silver locks. His own hands went down to the small of her back and the kiss became deeper, more enjoyable.

Unlike their first, and only, kiss...this one wasn't rushed. Inuyasha knew this time that Kagome wouldn't disappear, so they took their time. After all, they had all the time in the world.

* * *

Kikyou gazed out her tower window, her gray eyes hooded while her face remained still in a mask of indifference. 

Inuyasha was gone.

She didn't know how it had happened. No one from the Western Lands had even bothered to come to her wedding to tell her that he wouldn't come. Kikyou had at least expected a message from Lord Sesshoumaru, but none had ever come.

She would have asked Kanna what had happened, where her fiancé was, but the mirror youkai seemed to be missing too.

So the young queen was left alone in her stone tower in her cold castle. Left to her thoughts on what was and what could be. She stared unseeingly as the sun began to disappear almost completely.

But even through the sadness that she would never be with Inuyasha, was the triumphant reminder that she had taken Kagome down with her.

At least the younger princess was dead and could never ruin Kikyou's happiness again...

* * *

"It's sweet, isn't it?" Sango asked lightly as she and Miroku watched Kagome and her husband-to-be waltz happily around the forest clearing, stealing kisses with one another every few moments. 

She turned to him, her magenta eyes bright, as all her problems with the monk were forgotten.

Miroku, glad that for the moment Sango was talking with him as a friend again, nodded slowly.

He watched her as she turned back to spy on Kagome as the princess danced. Sango's eyes sparkled; truth be told, she was a rather hopeless romantic. She hid it well, but she would always believe that love would conquer all.

...Now all she had to learn was that that applied to her own life as well.

Miroku couldn't take it any longer. He had to fix everything. The curse wouldlift sometime before midnight, no one knew quite when, and then they'd be back to their normal selves.

Before that happened, he had to clear up the whole mess. He had to make her see that all those years ago, when he'd proposed, he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her.

It was now or never...

"Sango," Miroku began, giving the young woman a steady look. His voice seemed to break whatever force that was holding back Sango's distrust, and now her face began to contort into a scowl and he came towards her. "Listen to me!"

"No!" She snapped, looking him full in the face and refusing the building desire to run. Sango didn't run from anything. "It's just a sick joke! No man would want me for a...a...wife!"

Miroku stopped coming towards her and looked at her thoughtfully. When he spoke his normally aloof, calm, teasing voice was deadly serious. "Why would no man want you for a wife? Make me understand..."

Sango gave him a withering glare. Waving a hand vaguely in Kagome's direction, she suddenly stated, "Look at her. Look at Kagome, and then look at me. Think about us."

Miroku did as she asked and looked between the princess and the demon huntress. "I still don't get it. Are you suggesting that you aren't pretty enough? Because...in my eyes, you're the most beautiful woman I have ever had the pleasure to meet."

"Not that...Me. I'm not feminine! I'm not, at all, girly. I can hold my own, as well as any man, but I'd never be any good in the kitchen or at cleaning."

Miroku looked at her incredulously.

"Exactly! I don't want a wife that can only do household chores. I fell in love with you because you can 'hold your own'! I want a wife who is strong. And to me, there is no one more of a woman than you are!"

Here his eyes traveled irritatingly down her curves. It only served to make her even angrier.

Doubt began to crowd Sango's pretty pink eyes as she continued to look unsure and annoyed. She'd never been all that feminine. She'd grown up with a brother and a father. No female company.

But the longer she glared at him, the more she saw.

Miroku had always been able to lie smoothly. He'd never had a problem with keeping the truth from someone. But Sango could always tell whether or not he meant something by his eyes.

His eyes always betrayed him.

And for as long as she'd known the monk, she'd never seen him looking so honest. Sango had never seen him look so open and unguarded.

Slowly, tantalizingly slowly, her hard glare softened into a defenseless look.

"...Really?" she asked timidly. Timid. Everything she wasn't.

Miroku looked at her and nodded. "Yes," he added for good measure to get it into her brain. "I meant every word when I asked you to be my wife."

"You sure, monk, 'cause as soon as you go through with this, there's no turning back!" She threatened. Her voice was more sure now, had the old bite in it, and she didn't look as spooked as before when he took a few steps closer.

"I know, and I'd never want to leave. Sango...will you marry me?"

Sango opened her mouth to answer, but before she could even get one word out, something happened.

She never did get to answer that question.

* * *

Kikyou drifted away from her window as the world was plunged into darkness. 

The only evidence of day that was left was the lighter purple hues in the west.

Nighttime had finally arrived, giving her the excuse to finally go to sleep. She needed it to rest her tired body and mind. Her mind needed to be refreshed in the morning when she began to rule her kingdom once again.

This time there was nothing to distract her.

* * *

Miroku saw what was happening before he felt it. 

Sango's face, mere seconds away from answering the question that had haunted him for years, started to glitter. In fact, her entire body seemed to shimmer and waver.

Shortly after, Miroku felt a tingle all the way from his toes to his ears. He was sure he looked like Sango; turning around quickly, he saw the rest of the dwarves looking panicked as they went through the same thing.

Trying to locate what was different, what had caused it, Miroku finally saw it. The sun had set. It was time.

Everything in his line of vision seemed to be shrinking, the giant trees becoming shorter, but in fact _he_ was growing taller. In barely a few seconds he had nearly doubled in his height.

No longer three feet, he was now closer to six.

Next to him, Sango laughed in delight as she spun around, seeing everyone and everything normal again.

The curse was gone and the dwarves were no longer dwarves.

...Guess the time WAS sunset. No one had been all that sure.

As the rest of the non-dwarves shouted and danced in joy -they were finally free- Miroku turned back to Sango. She stopped her happy little dance to look at him, the most beautiful smile he'd ever seen spread across her face.

She opened her mouth a second time. Whether to answer his proposal or to say something about the curse being over, Miroku would never know.

Before a single word could slip out of her mouth, he stepped forward. Roughly, he wrapped one arm around her waist and another over her shoulder. Grinning mischievously, he dipped her and gave her the most brain- scattering kiss she'd ever had...or would ever have again in that case.

And the best part?

She kissed him back.

Miroku couldn't have asked for a better 'yes'.

"So that was all the babble you were talking about when you told me they were magical! You didn't tell me they were cursed!" Inuyasha growled into Kagome's ear as they watched the celebration.

Kagome grinned and leaned back into him, her back molded to his chest. "You never asked," she reprimended him teasingly.

Inuyasha scowled and leaned down so his chin rested on her shoulder, his arms enveloping her. "You could have just told me."

"No way," Kagome shook her head quickly, "It was their secret that they trusted me with and I wasn't going to go and tell a stranger."

"I'm not a stranger!"

"Hn," Kagome grunted, but decided not to answer that.

"I have a question...actually I have two, but who cares? Kikyou thinks you're dead, right?" Inuyasha asked, momentarily serious.

Kagome nodded slowly. "Yeah, I think she doesn't know that I didn't die. I was just put in an enchanted sleep since she forgot that herb thingy, but I don't think she knows that. But, somehow, every time before, she knew whether I was alive or not, so who's to say she won't figure it out?"

"If I ever see her again, I'll happily destroy her," Inuyasha offered gleefully.

Kagome frowned. She didn't really want to see that happen. "Maybe she's so sure that I'm dead, this time, thatshe won't bother to see if I'm alive."

Inuyasha sulked. That wasn't how she was supposed to answer! She wassupposed fall into awe at his awesome powers to protect her. Damn...

"Whatever, but she's dead if we eversee her again," Inuyasha muttered.

"Remind me not to invite her to our wedding," Kagome grumbled.

"Would you have anyway?"

"No," Kagome said bluntly. "What was your other question?"

"...Uh," Inuyasha had to rack his brain to remember. "Why did Queeny want to kill you off in the first place?"

Kagome opened her mouth to answer, but had to stop. Why the hell did Kikyou try to kill her this time?

"...I have no idea," she admitted.

"Keh."

Kagome suddenly launched herself out of his arms and ran forward, spinning around to face him again with a beaming smile. "Let's go celebrate!"

"Celebrate what?" Inu huffed, a scowl marring his face.

Yep, Kagome decided, Inuyasha was definitely being too sweet before. But she didn't really mind him like this either.

"Our engagement, silly! And Sango and Miroku'! _**And**_ the fact that they aren't dwarves anymore!" She gave him an amused glare.

"Keh," he huffed, "Or I could just celebrate the fact that this whole insane adventure is over."

"That works too," Kagome grabbed him by the arm and hauled him off into the laughing and dancing of the former dwarves.

And so they celebrated all night.

* * *

Kanna watched with half lidded eyes the next morning as Kikyou approached her. Many generations ago, Kanna had accidentally became locked in her own mirror. Since then, Kikyou's family line had used her like a servant. 

If asked a question in rhyme form, Kanna could only tell the truth. If asked a regular question, thelittle mirror demonhad a choice to lie.

Kanna half feared that Kikyou was about to ask her if Kagome was still alive, then the whole crazy thing would start again.

Only a strong miko could release Kanna, and Kagome, although untrained, could do it alone with her raw power and pure heart. But when Kikyou had spent her whole life trying to destroy the younger princess, Kanna had given up hope that she'd be released any time soon.

If Kikyou asked her, at that moment, if Kagome was still alive, Kanna would have to say yes. And then the whole thing would start over again, Kagome would probably end up dead, and then the white haired little girl would never be free.

But, to her immense relief, Kikyou didn't ask that. Instead she asked her famous question:

-

"_Looking glass, looking glass, on the wall, _

Who in my land is the most beautiful of them all."

-

Kanna sighed silently in relieve. A few hours before, Kagome and the others had left for Inuyasha's castle.

Technically...Kagome was no longer in Kikyou's land. She was in Sesshoumaru's.

-

"_You are, My Queen, once again, _

In this land where we spend yen."

-

"Thank you, Kanna," Kikyou nodded to the mirror youkai, satisfied with her answer.

"Of course," Kanna whispered drifting back and disappearing into the mists in her mirror. Now, all Kanna had to do was convince Kagome to release her from her prison. Then she wouldn't have to serve Kikyou anymore.

The problem?

Kagome probably had no idea how to...

_

* * *

One Year Later

* * *

_The guests cheered as the blushing bride and the handsome groom joined in a deep, pleasurable kiss... 

...Sealing their vows and showing to all that they were now bound together until death do they part.

Happily walking back down the aisle, the young woman smiled, her cheeks flushed with color and the man smirked smugly.

Nearly skipping in happiness, the few loose tendrils that had escaped her elegant upsweep of hair bounced. Her long silk, white kimono trailed on the ground as Sakura blossoms danced down from the sky.

And to no one's surprise, Inuyasha was wearing his fire rat clothes...

As soon as they reached the end of the many rows of onlookers, Kagome was tackled and hugged by her best friend. Sango squeezed the life out of the poor bride as she wished the couple happiness.

Miroku gave Inuyasha a manly handshake before giving up and hugging the groom as well. Inuyasha hastily pushed the laughing monk off.

Miroku then gave Kagome an innocent hug, being watched like a hawk by both his wife and the newest husband. Kagome returned it.

"Congratulations!" Sango and Miroku chorused, grinning madly at their two friends. Inuyasha scowled, but Kagome eagerly enough smiled back.

"Thank you," Kagome chirped, "And congratulations to you guys too. You've been married for one month! Sango-chan, I can't believe you haven't slaughtered him yet!"

Sango laughed merrily as Miroku looked off to the side while sweatdropping. Sango grinned, "Believe me, I've wanted to!"

"But she would never harm me!" Miroku announced as he slipped an arm around his wife's waist. His hand did stray however and the couple went into a few rounds of 'grope and slap' before they settled down again.

Some things never change.

Kagome noticed that they were still standing at the end of the aisle and the guests were waiting for the signal that they could leave for the after party. Kagome blushed and herded the other three away.

"I can't believe I'm finally married!" Kagome crowed. "And I don't have to scrub the latrines!"

Sango winced at that. "Eww..."

Kagome grinned. "It's not that bad. Sheesh, Sango. You and housework are like Miroku and an all male bar."

Sango scowled.

Miroku pecked her on the cheek and the taijiya calmed some. "That's why I love her," Miroku announced, "She makes me clean the house!"

They all laughed, except for Inuyasha who was snickering at the monk's pathetic-ness. 'He just doesn't know how to handle his woman...he doesn't know how to be the man of the house.'

Although, the fact that Kagome made him garden seemed to slip his mind.

"Come on, it's almost evening and the party starts as soon as the sun sets," Kagome prodded them into moving towards a nearby clearing where a tent was set up.

Inuyasha sighed, but wrapped an arm comfortably around her shoulders and they started off, ready to celebrate the wonder that is Holy Matrimony.

* * *

As the couple finished their dance, a set of steel gray eyes followed them from the shadows. 

That morning Kikyou had been given word by Kanna, who was still in her service, that a woman who was more beautiful than Kikyou was marrying her beloved Inuyasha.

Kikyou, naturally, couldn't believe it.

How could she have not heard of this maiden before?

Just for precaution, the queen went to the wedding with plans to stop it and rightfully claim the lord's heart. But then she saw Kagome...

...Somehow that dreadful little brat had survived once more. The worst part was that Kikyou hadn't known about it for an entire year! How could Kanna keep such precious information from her?

Inuyasha and Kagome left the dance floor and drifted together out the door, holding hands and simply staring up at the sky. They weren't talking.

Inuyasha had never been much of a talker and Kagome enjoyed silence.

Kikyou set out after them, wanting to finish her goals once and for all. Kagome would die. And Inuyasha would have to as well if he couldn't live with the fact that him and Kikyou were meant to be together.

When Kikyou caught up with them, she was appalled to see them facing one another, holding hands and just looking dreamily at each other.

They were happy.

Happy and in love.

This just wouldn't do.

"Inuyasha!" Kikyou's deep voice cut through the pleasant silence between the newly weds. "How could you betray me?"

Inuyasha turned to look at her, the only emotion in his eyes now was irritation.

Kagome looked over, confused, but clearly not afraid. "What are you doing here, Kikyou?"

Kikyou turned unbelieving eyes on her little stepsister. "Not only are you supposed to be dead, but you have just married my soul mate!"

Kagome blinked back at her. "'Soul mate'?"

"We were meant to be together," Kikyou drawled.

"Oh," Kagome shook her head sadly. "Kikyou you have to give this up! I'm Inuyasha's, not you. You have a kingdom to run, you can't be obsessed with killing me anymore. Our people need you to lead them!"

Kikyou frowned ever so slightly. "I will lead them, as soon as you are disposed of. Ever since your father and my mother married, you have been in the way."

"I didn't do it on purpose," Kagome grumbled under her breath.

Inuyasha looked between the sisters, trying to decide what to do. Kikyou obviously meant business, but Kagome didn't seem to be afraid at all. Out of instinct, he pushed Kagome gently behind him, his body like some sort of shield.

"Leave Kikyou," he growled. He didn't have time to deal with this. It was his wedding for Hell's sake!

"Not until I get what I deserve," Kikyou told him calmly.

"I'll show you what you deserve," he flexed his claws menacingly, the moonlight reflecting off the sharp edges.

Kagome scowled at him and reached forward to shove his hand down, causing him to look at her in utter confusion.

"I don't care if Kikyou and I don't get along, you're not killing her!"

"Kagome!" Inuyasha shouted. "Don't be stupid, she wants to kill you! You moron!"

"Shut up, jackass, and have a little heart," she argued back. "She's still my sister, by blood or marriage it doesn't matter."

Inuyasha glared at her. "Kagome, you're making a dumb mistake. Don't be so understanding!"

"Yes, Kagome's understanding natureis an admirable trait...but it will also be her downfall," Kikyou detached the long bow from her back and had an arrow notched before Kagome could registered the movement.

First the razor sharp, deadly point was aimed at Inuyasha, but then it lowered, slowly, to the princess.

Kagome had unwittingly stepped out from behind Inuyasha's safety during the argument.

"Die Kagome!" Kikyou commanded as she brought the string back until it was tight, preparing to let the weapon loose.

She didn't seem to remember the fact that Inuyasha was not human and could move pretty damn fast. Before Kikyou had a chance to go through with it, he had smacked the bow loose and the weapon clattered to the ground near Kagome.

His claws were a scant few centimeters from the queen's delicate neck. "You will not hurt my Kagome," he hissed into her ear. He watched, satisfied, as her eyes widened in terror...

...But it was all an act. He'd let down his guard in triumph and that was all she needed to have a dagger at his throat.

But like hell Kagome would ever let Inuyasha die.

"Kikyou!" she shrieked, gaining the older girl's attention. Inuyasha jumped away from the young queen as Kagome let her arrow fly. Her aim was true and Kikyou shuddered from the impact as the arrow was lodged in her chest, just above her heart.

The impact caused Kikyou's head to fly back in surprise and her whole body to fall backwards into a large tree in the clearing.

Before anyone but Kagome knew what had happened, Kikyou was pinned to the tree, her eyes wide in surprise.

As she drifted asleep, Kikyou glared at her younger sister with hatred.

Kagome watched with indifference as she sent her wicked, older stepsister into an enchanted sleep. "Maybe when you wake up again, you'll be a little nicer."

Although she'd never advanced her miko powers, they were still strong and raw enough to do her bidding. The only real reason she was able to do such an advanced spell was because her heart was mostly pure.

Inuyasha scowled at the pinned Kikyou and the calm Kagome. Damn, he was wrong, he hated being wrong. He'd thought Kagome couldn't protect herself and here she goes proving him incorrect.

With a sigh of annoyance, he linked his arm with Kagome's and started to drag her away from the sight of her sister pinned to a tree by an arrow.

He'd gotten the girl, he'd finished the adventure, and he'd proven Sesshoumaru wrong. Life was sweet.

"Where are we going?" Kagome asked innocently.

Inuyasha looked down at her and gave a wicked smirk, Kagome noted the gleam in his eye that would do Miroku proud. "It is our wedding night," he reminded her, the wicked grin still in place.

Kagome blushed, giggled, and then went off with him without protest.

* * *

_An Epilogue...of Sorts_

_

* * *

_

Kikyou remained pinned to the tree for centuries to come. No one wanted to remove her and instead set up a shrine around her, to worship her as a goddess because of her cold beauty. However, in the year 2010 AD, a thief Onigumo accidentally ran face first into the tree, knocking the arrow loose. Kikyou spent the rest of her life as a shrine maiden since she could no longer be queen. She never did find a man to marry, but lived happily with her reincarnatedflying fez hat wearing monkeys. She did pass on her grandmother's beloved fork to a random passerbyer on the steet. 

-

Myouga the Flea served Inuyasha and his family until the day he died. His death was brought about by being stepped on.

-

Kaede became the next protector of the Shikon no Tama mines. Although she hid it well behind her grandmotherly mask, she rather enjoyed cursing people into dwarves. When she was almost 95 years old, she fell in love and married a real dwarf.

-

Kanna, after several attempts on Kagome's behalf, was released from her prison inside her own mirror.

-

In a fit of insanity, Totosai (Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru's dedicated blacksmith) married. Locals insist that it was to Totosai's three-eyed demon cow, but there are reports that the locals are also mentally unstable.

-

Hojo lived a long, but dull, life. The two biggest events after being turned back into a human was the breaking of his toe, and the fact that he learned the word 'ow' during the incident. Witnesses say that it sounded more like 'Dur-ow'...

-

Kagura finally killed Naraku off when he took one of their schemes too far. He wanted to con people into thinking Kagura was really blind...by actually removing her eyes.

-

Kagura, her eyes still intact, basically disappeared from record. Although, there is a legend of a wind demoness marrying a dog demon lord...

-

Rin, Inuyasha and Sesshoumaru's adorable little sister, married Sango's younger brother Kohaku, who had remained a demon salyer, waiting for his sister's return. Inuyasha had to physically restrain his brother from killingKohaku when the announcement was made.

-

Shippou was adopted by Kagome and grew up inher and Inuyasha'shousehold. He was the heir and was given both the northern and western kingdoms when he became of age. Records show he married a kitsune vixen who enjoyed a good game of 'what if' and 'why' every once in awhile.

-

Sesshoumaru ended up giving the Western Lands to Inuyasha and his wife for unknown reasons. Jaken, Sesshoumaru's 'personal assistant' insisted that it was because the stoic lord fell madly in love. Unsurprisingly, he was ignored.

-

Kouga was upgraded from huntsman to top guard because of Kagome's gratitude for sparing her life when Kikyou had ordered her death. For some reason, Kouga seemed to never hear the "Kouga! I'm married to Inuyasha!" and continued to pursue 'his woman' until death...there is reason to believe Inuyasha was somehow involved in it.

-

Sango and Miroku lived long, healthy lives. To fake disgust, but secret pleasure, Sango had 22 children with her monk husband. An equal amount of sons and daughters. This caused an on going war of girls vs. boys...obviously, with Sango on their side, the girls won.

-

Being married to a hanyou meant that Kagome's life was lengthened to his own. They ruled the Northern Kingdom and the Western Lands together and had many memorable arguments. Most of them were about nothing just so that they could 'make up' in the end.

They never had any children because, as Inuyasha pointed out, Shippou was enough of a handful. For unknown reasons, the royal couple had a well installed into the clearing where they had fallen in love. Rumor had it that it had to do with the fact that Kagome only came to the clearing in the first place so long ago to get water since the dwarves' cottage's was dry. The couple, however, says that that's not the realreason...

...The real reason was never discovered.

_And so they lived strangely ever after..._

* * *

ENDING NOTE: In the original story Brothers' Grim the wicked queen was fitted with red hot iron shoes and forced to dance until she died. I didn't want to kill Kikyou, that's a bit much. The idea to pin her to a tree **IS NOT MINE** and was suggested by pruningshears in a chapter 3 review. The right goes to them!

* * *

THE END 


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